Is Pharmacogenetic Testing a Vital Tool for Enhancing Therapeutic Management of Patients Worldwide?

Session Description

Pharmacogenomics is one of the core scientific pillars of ASCPT and its flagship journal, Clinical Pharmacology & Therapeutics. Pharmacogenomic implementation services that inform drug and dose selection have been rapidly adopted in the academic healthcare centers in the United States and Europe. The rapid expansion of testing services has been based on the availability of new genetic technologies and a wealth of information, particularly on genetic variants that influence drug response in European ancestral populations. Importantly, the Clinical Pharmacogenetics Implementation Consortium (CPIC) has developed guidelines that can be used to inform clinical decision support systems to advise providers on how to use pharmacogenomic information in drug or dose selection. However, in spite of the widespread adoption in academic medical centers, there remains a resistance to pharmacogenomic testing, which is multifactorial, but includes cost-effectiveness, requirements for expensive infrastructure, lack of provider education and skepticism that there is any cost benefit to the besting.

In this session we will have an open debate centered around the statement: Is pharmacogenetic testing a vital tool for enhancing therapeutic management of patients worldwide, balancing the pros and cons.

Learning Objectives

1. The participant will be able to provide two examples of genetic polymorphisms that are genotyped in pharmacogenomic testing services.
2. The participant will be able to list three reasons why pharmacogenomic testing may be beneficial for patients.
3. The participant will be able to list three barriers for implementing pharmacogenomic testing services, including ones that relate specifically to underserved patient populations and global health equity.

Session Schedule

9:30 AM - 9:36 AM MT
Introduction
Piet H. van der Graaf, PharmD, PhD and Kathleen M. Giacomini, PhD

9:36 AM - 9:42 AM MT
Pharmacogenetics Consortia Perspective
Henk-Jan Guchelaar, PharmD, PhD

9:42 AM - 9:48 AM MT
Clinicial Perspective
David J. Greenblatt, MD

9:48 AM - 9:54 AM MT
Underserved Populations and Early-Career Perspective
Karen E Brown, PharmD

9:54 AM - 10:00 AM MT
Global Health Perspective
Neil Hanchard, MD, PhD

10:00 AM - 10:25 AM MT
Moderated Debate

10:25 AM - 10:30 AM MT
Has the Debate Moved the Needle?: Wrap Up
Piet H. van der Graaf, PharmD, PhD and Kathleen M. Giacomini, PhD