By: Deborah Johnson Wood
Out of about 350 molecular medicine centers in the country, Grand Rapids’ Center for Molecular Medicine is in the leading ten percent to offer genetic testing that determines a patient’s compatibility and non-compatibility with certain prescription drugs.
A simple blood test, called Cytochrome P450 Genotyping, enables physicians to prescribe the right dosage of the right drug the first time. Patients feel better faster, avoid taking prescription drugs on a trial and error basis, and avoid taking drugs that could cause adverse reactions.
“Prescription drugs are not one size fits all, they’re one size fits most,” said Doctor Daniel H. Farkas, executive director. “In the same way that height and eye color are genetically controlled so is the body's ability to metabolize drugs.”
If a patient under metabolizes a drug, it sits in the body and can build up to toxic levels. Over metabolizing a drug means it’s processed too quickly to do any good.
“This test determines if you’re going to metabolize a drug properly, and that has health implications,” Dr. Farkas said. “Because a person’s genotype never changes, this test is only needed once.”
Cytochrome P450 proteins enable the human body to absorb and use different drugs. There are hundred of these proteins. The CMM tests for only a handful of them, but that handful is responsible for the metabolism of 25 percent of the prescription drugs on the US market.
The test is based on decades of research, and was approved by the Food and Drug Administration in 2005. The cost is $900. Although insurance companies are not covering the cost yet, Dr. Farkas said that one West Michigan insurance company is investigating the possibility.
Source: Daniel H. Farkas, PhD, HCLD, Center for Molecular Medicine
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Deborah Johnson Wood is Development News Editor for Rapid Growth. She can be contacted at [email protected].
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