EP 229: Turning personal tragedy into a movement for preventive genetics with Matthew Goldstein of jscreen

This week on The Genetics Podcast, Patrick is joined by Dr. Matthew Goldstein, CEO of jscreen. They discuss his journey from physician-scientist and biotech founder to leading a national nonprofit focused on preventive genetic screening, how a personal tragedy reshaped his mission around carrier screening and access, and what it will take to close the gap between the promise of genomics and its real-world implementation in healthcare.

Show Notes: 

0:00 Intro to The Genetics Podcast

00:58 Welcome to Matthew

01:41 Matthew’s path from an MD-PhD to founding a personalized cancer vaccine biotech

09:06 From personal tragedy to leading jscreen to expand access to reproductive carrier screening 

17:11 Purpose, grief, and how Matthew has led jscreen in honor of his daughter

20:38 The implementation gap between genomic potential and real-world preventive screening 

23:33 Nonprofit models, reimbursement barriers, and building sustainable access to preventive genetic screening

28:27 Lessons from the Jewish community’s experience with Tay-Sachs and gaps in understanding

33:05 Preconception carrier screening and the role of community in preventive health

38:04 Closing remarks

Find out more: jscreen