Taking Medicines
Personalized Medicines
Medicines: One Size Does Not Fit All
According to a 1998 study published in the Journal of the American Medical Association, bad reactions to properly prescribed medicines caused 2 million people to be hospitalized in 1 year alone. Researchers believe that many of these errors show that when it comes to taking medicines, "one size does not fit all."
For example, allergy medicines simply don't work for everyone who takes them. For some people, taking the standard dosage of a prescription pain reliever such as codeine offers no pain relief, and can even cause side effects that are uncomfortable or even life-threatening.
As the body ages, fat and muscle content change, affecting how the body absorbs and processes drugs. Many other factors -- exercise habits, diet, and general state of health -- also influence how a person responds to medications.
Genes Can Affect Your Response to Medicines
But another key factor is heredity. Genes can influence the way people respond to many types of medicines, such as prescription pain drugs with codeine like Tylenol#3®, which is acetaminophen plus codeine; antidepressants like Prozac®, also called fluoxetine; and many blood pressure and asthma medicines.
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Genes determine the make-up of all the body's proteins, and as drugs travel through the body they interact with proteins. So, small variations in your genetic make-up can produce proteins that act differently. This can affect how you respond -- or don't respond -- to a medicine.
How Proteins Interact With Medications
The human body is made up of millions of different proteins of various sizes, shapes, and functions. These are the molecules that hold together tissues and organs, allow people to sense the world around them, and process -- or metabolize -- foods and other substances.
An important job for some proteins is to get rid of medicines, while other proteins actually help medicines do their jobs. Some proteins activate drugs by converting them from an inactive form to an active one. For example, the painkiller codeine is a drug that is activated in this way by proteins in the body.
What is Pharmacogenetics
Many scientists around the country are conducting research to understand how genes affect the way people respond to medicines. This type of research is called pharmacogenetics.
As pharmacogenetics research progresses, it will become increasingly important to identify normal variations in a person's genes. This could be done through a simple gene test. For example, researchers may rub the inside of a volunteer's cheek with a cotton swab and then examine the DNA in those cheek cells. There are no health risks associated with this type of test.
Uncovering differences in people's genetic backgrounds will help doctors prescribe the right medicine in the right amount for each person, making medicines more effective for everyone. This will prevent unnecessary illness and save lives lost from the "one-size-fits-all" approach that is common today.
Scientists will also better understand the role that genes play in causing or contributing to diseases such as cancer, heart disease, diabetes, depression, and many others. Research in pharmacogenetics will help scientists make future medicines as safe and effective as possible.
