Genome Research Benefits More in Reach

When movie star Angelina Jolie went public about her double mastectomy in May and said she chose that course after genetic testing indicated an 87 percent risk of breast cancer, costs of the gene testing were upwards of $3,000, which may or may not be covered by insurance. However, under Obamacare, genetic counseling and testing must be provided without patient cost-sharing for women whose family history indicates high risk.

Myriad Genetics' stock enjoyed a boost after Jolie disclosed having used the company's cancer-screening services. Thursday's Supreme Court decision was in response to a challenge to Myriad patents.

The mixed ruling, which allowed legal protections for synthetically produced genetic material while disallowing those for naturally occurring genes, sent shares surging more than 10 percent before crashing at the end the day and continuing to fall Friday to close at $27.59, 27 percent off Thursday's high. Investors apparently saw the ruling as opening Myriad's core hereditary testing business to competition.

(Read More: Bristol and Merck Shares Surge on Cancer Drug News)

Matthew Foy, with GlaxoSmithKline's independent venture capital fund SR One, offered one example of a breakthrough technology that could be available soon. He said a biotech SR One backs, PsiOxus Therapeutics, produces a cancer drug that self-amplifies as it attacks cancer cells.

"It has a genetically engineered virus. ... When it finds a cancer cell, it makes hundreds of thousands of copies of itself. It bursts the cell, kills the cell, and the environment is now flooded with these copies of the (cancer-cell-fighting) virus," he said. "The idea is it can spread throughout a tumor extremely quickly."

The drug is in Phase I clinical trials, where it is tested on a small group of people.

Silvester said a key aspect of genome technology is that it allows for the different ways people react to treatments.

"Drugs that work for some people can unfortunately not work for others, or even kill people, and that's why they're not brought to the market," he said. "So having the ability to target drugs more effectively is critical."

GlaxoSmithKline shares are up more than 20 percent year-to-date. The British drugmaker this week fired one head researcher and disciplined others over "misrepresented" data.

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Genome Research Benefits More in Reach