Dutch scientists: Widespread pharmacogenomics may be 5 years away

DÜSSELDORF, Germany ­— Promising news about the future of pharmacogenomics has emerged from the annual World Congress of Pharmacy and Pharmaceutical Sciences.  According to a plan presented by the Royal Dutch Pharmacists Association (KNMP) and the Dutch Hospital Pharmacists Association, community pharmacies could be offering pharmacogenomics services by 2020.

“Pharmacogenomics is one of the first clinical applications of the post-genomic era, allowing precision medicine rather than a one-size-fits-all approach to prescribing,” Dr. Ka-Chun Cheung, senior project manager at the KNMP’s department of health research and innovation, said.

The KNMP has been developing a plan for pharmacogenomics since 2005, and has created recommendations for 80 gene-drug combinations. These combinations have been integrated into the country’s drug database and e-prescribing and –dispensing systems.

“This means that clinical decision support for a group of medicines and for a limited, genetically tested group of patients is already possible,” Cheung said. The Netherlands is the world leader in pharmacogenetics. Other countries, including the USA, use our group’s recommendations. With these guidelines, pharmacists can customise the dosing of medicines to the individual’s needs.” 

Now, the country is piloting pharmacogenomics tests in pharmacies, though Cheung noted that a potential barrier to widespread pharmacogenomics availability in community pharmacy is IT infrastructure and the possible difficulties pharmacists might have with reimbursement for care and testing.