Pharmacogenomics
- Pharmacogenomics is “the study of how genes
affect a persons’ response to drugs”
- Basically, not every drug will work the same way
for every person. One persons’ body, due to genetics, may use a drug faster,
slower, or not at all while another persons’ may do exactly what we would
expect. Pharmacogenomics helps to cut out the guess work and make your drugs
individualized.
- This test would require a mouth swab to be sent
to a lab and would give you an individualized report based on your genes. It
would take about 1 week to get your results from when the swab is performed.
- Not all drugs are affected by gene differences –
we will check to make sure you are on specific drugs (or your physician is
considering them) to determine if this test is right for you
- Common drugs to test included clopidogrel
(Plavix), eliglustat (Cerdelga), carbamazepine (Tegretol), ivacaftor
(Kalydeco), several cancer drugs, seizure drugs and Hepatitis C drugs
- This service requires a prescription from your
primary care physician
- Some insurances cover this under certain circumstances