Personalizing medicines for individuals, easy to talk about, harder for the sciences, until now.
The idea of personalized medicine like this has been around since the 1950s. But it hasn’t been until very recently that such genetic testing became inexpensive enough to make it within reach.
Getting the ‘right’ medication is now becoming more than try this and let me know. While many symptoms and cause-effect parameters are still leading to successful prescribing, getting better at it with the help of science just makes sense.
This is especially true in psychiatry, where there are dozens of medications that could be prescribed for common mental health concerns, such as anxiety, depression and attention deficit/hyperactivity disorder (ADHD).
What if doctors had a better idea ahead of time which medications may work better for you than others, based upon your unique biology and biochemical makeup? They could then make prescribing decisions with a lot more knowledge, finding you a medication that would have a higher chance of working the first time.
This process is called pharmacogenetic testing, and is the process of examining a person's unique genetic structure to help determine what medication will metabolize best within that person's system.
Mental Health Help | From the study posted on psychcentral.com, here is what they say:
Because research shows that after your first antidepressant prescription, less than 1 in 5 people will experience a positive effect from that medication. That means the vast majority of folks — 4 out of 5 — will experience no or little relief from their depressive symptoms.
Right now, there are at least two pharmacogenetic tests are available for the treatment of attention deficit/hyperactivity disorder. Harmonyx’s ADHD test examines the effects of a patient’s genotype on the metabolism and efficacy of commonly prescribed medications, including methylphenidate (Ritalin, Concerta, Daytrana) and amphetamine salts (Adderall).
AssureRx’s GeneSightRx ADHD test analyzes variations in three genes that influence how a patient might metabolize certain medications. All a clinician needs to do is get a DNA sample from a patient through a cheek swab. The company has a similar test for antidepressants.
The tests typically cost less than $100, and in return, a patient gets a list of drugs, in order of effectiveness.
The future holds promise for improved outcomes through research and development of processes like those mentioned above. The more we know about how certain medicines will react for individuals, the better we can use science to benefit us all.
