Galaxy Radar

For many years, we have posted a selection of almost 20 research and news articles per week on social media. Now, we are excited to start sharing a weekly summary of those articles into a “Galaxy Radar,” a weekly blog post. We will feature a few articles with further discussion, as well as provide a list of other papers and news articles that came to our attention.

Our posts have generated important conversations in the tick- and vector-borne disease community, building awareness, advancing clinical understanding, and provoking debate. The comments on our posts have sparked unique insights and new ways of thinking about infection-associated chronic illness and the risk factors that we encounter in our daily lives.

Typically, we post our selections and let the resulting conversation develop organically. We truly appreciate all of your contributions, both fresh perspectives and criticisms. We also appreciate the care that you have shown for us and for each other in addressing this complex area of emerging infectious disease.

The research articles we select are meant to tell a story pointing back to our passion: the positive impact of direct detection of vector-borne diseases on patients’ lives. We don’t necessarily pick “the best” or the most impactful articles that come across our desks. Our team is not making those types of judgements. Rather, we select articles that point to topics that broaden the conversation around vector-borne disease. We will continue to do so and hope the Galaxy Radar format provides a concise summary, allowing you to keep abreast of this dynamic and complex landscape from the Galaxy perspective.

The topics we monitor fall into several distinct categories, including:

• Risk factors and prevention of vector-borne diseases, with a focus on One Health and how to safely live and work with animals;
• Performance of existing and promising new diagnostic approaches, especially as they inform clinical discovery;
• Associations between vector-borne pathogens and disease, particularly chronic conditions impacting the skin, eyes, joints, heart, and brain; and
• Complexity of treatment, including emerging therapies and their efficacy, particularly in the context of immune function.

We are, at heart, a diagnostics company. But we monitor these topics because they affect our customers and their testing needs. And although the challenges of vector-borne illness sometimes feel insurmountable, we firmly believe that science will provide solutions. Galaxy will continue to provide diagnostic leadership to get us there.

We look forward to your continued engagement as we go forward in this new chapter of sharing information. Together, we will advance the dialogue on vector-borne disease and ensure that future patients have access to the solutions they deserve.