Abstract
Pharmacogenomics is a subdiscipline within the field of personalized medicine the goal of which is to find an association between variability in drug response and genome-wide variability and/or transcription of gene-encoded information. Optimally, pharmacogenetic testing is indicated prior to initiation of treatment with selected drugs and is aimed at increasing efficacy or reducing the risks of developing toxicity in predisposed patients.
In order to individualize pharmacotherapy, identification of only several selected polymorphisms falling within the field of pharmacogenetics has been applied in the clinical practice so far. This paper presents examples of when pharmacogenetic testing is prospectively used in preventing the occurrence of hypersensitivity (abacavir) and myelotoxicity (irinotecan, azathioprine) or in predicting efficacy (clopidogrel, anticancer treatment).
In accordance with the requirements of evidence-based medicine, these strategies should be utilized whenever evidence supporting their use is available. For most drugs, however, reliable pharmacogenetic evidence is still lacking and considerable effort will be needed to obtain such data through valid studies.