Pharmacogenomics
By: Cristian Corcione + Tristan Rubiano
What is Pharmacogenomics?
Pharmacogenomics involves using a person's genetic history, or genetic make-up to choose what kind of medicine and doses to give them. Some drugs work less effectively or more effectively for many individuals. In the future, doctors will be able to give people the best drug that has the greatest chance of helping them.
Occurrences and Benefits
Today, Doctors are using pharmacology to prescribe certain drugs to people. Some ways in the future include heart disease, cancer, asthma, and depression. Some benefits are improving the way existing drugs are being used. Another benefit is that some drugs that were experimented with and thrown aside, pharmacology is being used to bring those back. One of the best benefits is that it saves your time.
Pharmacogenomics is Improving Medicine for the Better
There May be Slight Disadvantages
Although it may be easy for middle-high classes to buy it, the lower class may not have the advantage to these kinds of drugs and may not be able to get the best treatment. Another complication is that there are 1000's of drugs that are altered just right to fit someone's genetic make up and it will be very difficult to prescribe each individual drug to each individual person.
How it Affects Organisms
Pharmacogenomics is a new type of method used by doctors, so it does not affect many organisms today, but may in future generations.
Advancing the Science - Pharmacogenomics
How it Affects Economics
There are some struggles economically with pharmacogenomics. Pharmaceutical research is very expensive, so it is very rare in this generation, but is most likely to become a more common thing in years to come.
Pharmacogenomics Affects the Environment
Currently, pharmacogenomics is being adopted as a unique tool for achieving different goals in the environment. On one hand, pharmacogenomic approaches are used to identify biomarkers and targets of currently prescribed medications as a source of new molecules suitable for the drug-development process. On the other hand, pharmacogenomic-based techniques are used as diagnostics tools to select and/or dose currently available therapeutics. In the future, in many generations with advanced technology, research has to be done to ensure that pharmacogenomics helps organisms in the environment.
How it Affects the World in Social Aspect
To ensure that benefits are achieved and harms are avoided, many people and professions associated with a health care system will need to be educated in pharmacogenomics theory, ethics and practice. Education measures are important to avoid widespread misunderstanding and concern which would ultimately hinder implementation. As pharmacogenomics is a new style of medicine based on genetic information, patients may be highly dependent on health care providers to explain the justifications, uses and limitations of pharmacogenomics. This will create a social impact on the world in years to come.
It Affects the Future
Pharmacogenomics is still very new, so its use for now is very limited. Some scientist and doctors are trying to take new approaches to excel the process. But in the future, pharmacogenomics will help create new tailored drugs to hopefully treat heart disease, Alzheimer disease, cancer, HIV/AIDS, and asthma.
Works Cited
http://www.hinnovic.org/economics-of-pharmacogenomics/
http://www.nature.com/tpj/journal/v2/n2/full/6500085a.html
http://apps.who.int/iris/bitstream/10665/43669/1/9789241595469_eng.pdf
http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC1874402/
http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC3255401/
http://www.medscape.com/viewarticle/727112