This webinar will introduce key concepts in pharmacogenomics and describe the current evidence base. Pharmacogenomics can be implemented pre-emptively where you use knowledge of genetic variants to personalise prescribing, or reactively where you test for a genetic variant after the patient has had a response to a medication. Through several clinical scenarios, the relevance of pharmacogenomics will be discussed, and existing testing pathways will be highlighted. Plans for development of a future pharmacogenomic service in the NHS will be outlined, detailing how this might impact healthcare professionals across the health system.
There is considerable inter-individual variability in the response to medicines. Although the reasons for this are multifactorial, it is well recognised that genetic variants play a significant contributory role - a concept known as pharmacogenomics. Variants in DNA are associated with both higher risk of adverse drug reactions, which are burdensome to patients and costly to healthcare systems, and lack of efficacy.