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The Pharmacogenetics Test

Pharmacogenetics is simply the study of how your own personal genetic makeup affects your response to medicine.

Why it’s so important

Initial prescribed medicines are often a “trial and error” decision. For example, 50% of arthritis patients, 43% of diabetic patients, 40% of asthma patients and 38% of depression patients will not respond to their initial treatments*. We believe that by taking our tests these figures can be reduced dramatically.

• Spear BB, Heath-Chiozzi M, Huff J. Clinical application of pharmacogenetics. Trends Mol Med. 2001; 7(5):201-4.

Who this test is for Anyone can take our test. However, it’s specifically prudent for anyone (of any age) who is about to be prescribed medications with indicated Pharmacogenetic biomarkers such as the following:

• When there is more than one drug to choose from.
• When being prescribed a drug that’s known to have serious side effects.
• When the starting dosage is not clear.
• For patients who are taking more than one drug already.

The Benefits With access to your own specific genetic data, your doctor will know precisely what the most effective medicine is for you and at what dose. What’s more, they can also use the results to eliminate any medications that are likely to cause you serious side effects. Finally, because your genetic makeup never changes, the results can be used any time in the future when you require prescription medicine.

Your test and results The test is nothing more than a simple saliva swab that can be done in the comfort of your own home, or in your doctor’s office. The sample is then sent to our laboratory and the results will be ready in around 2-3 weeks. The results will be sent back to your doctor who will then go through it with you and suggest what the next best steps should be. We also have a panel of doctors that can help interpret these tests if a patient should need additional support.