Direct-to-consumer (DTC) genetics continues to scale, with over 53 million DNA kits processed across the four largest consumer databases by March 2025. Yet most national genomics programmes cannot currently harness this participant-generated data within clinically governed pathways, which leads to duplicated costs and resources. This talk will explore how we move beyond DTC to Self-Request: a patient-initiated but clinically governed model that bridges consumer demand with responsible genomic medicine. It outlines how Self-Request can make genomics affordable, accessible, and clinically actionable without extra resources or compromising public safety. Mark Bartlett is CEO and Co-Founder of StoreGene, where he is building the data infrastructure to make genomics affordable, accessible, and actionable at population scale. With more than 20 years’ experience across genomics, the NHS, and digital health, he has focused on translating genomic science into usable, scalable health data that can support prevention, diagnosis, and treatment across the life course. He studied Human Genetics at UCL, worked in the NHS, and later helped scale digital health company DrDoctor, where he founded the Customer Success department. At StoreGene, he leads the development of a Clinical Genomic Operating System designed to move healthcare beyond one-off genetic tests towards reusable whole-genome data, partially delivered through a self-request model. This talk was recorded at our event ‘Direct-to-Consumer Medical Testing: Exploring Opportunities & Challenges’ which took place at St Anne’s College, University of Oxford on Tuesday 5th May 2026.

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