Providers

Pharmacogenomic Testing Overview

Pharmacogenomic (PGx)  tests can help predict how a patient will respond to a medication based on individual genetic makeup.

• Genetic variants affect drug absorption, metabolism and activity.
• Some testing labs can provide recommendations for over 300 medications including psychiatric, cardiac and pain medications.
• Utilizing Next generation Sequencing technology enables comprehensive coverage of about 200 gene variants in over 50 genes.

Therapeutic Areas

Pharmacogenomic (PGx) testing can help improve drug therapy in several therapeutic areas including:

• Cardiology
• Infectious disease
• Neurology
• Oncology
• Pain Management
• Psychiatry

There are over 300 medications with pharmacogenetic information included in the labeling. https://www.pharmgkb.org keeps a brief summary of the PGx information and testing requirements. You can view the complete list of covered medications here https://www.pharmgkb.org/labelAnnotations

Economics of Pharmacogenomics

One of the first questions that come to mind is the issue of costs. Does it make sense to do pharmacogenomic testing for your patient? Is this test cost effective? Will they (the insurance or other payor) pay for it and will they save money in the long run by performing the test?

Studies have shown a cost benefit in many cases. below are links to studies that have looked into the issue of cost and many show a financial benefit to pharmacogenomic testing.

Plöthner et al – Reviewed several studies and analyzed cost effectiveness and found the majority of studies reviewed showed testing was more cost effective than not testing.

https://link.springer.com/article/10.1007/s12325-016-0376-8