Personalized Medicine Still 15 to 20 Years Away

The Royal Society, the UK’s national academy of science, has published Personalised medicine: hopes and realities (pdf). In it, the Society concludes that although pharmacogenetics as a whole is promising, limited resources make it unlikely that personalized medicine will be realized in less than 15 to 20 years.

Some of the report’s recommendations:

1. Funding for well-designed studies in pharmacogenetics, probably from multiple sources including industry and government.
2. Access to patient data and DNA samples should be encouraged.
3. Tax incentives for developing orphan drugs that are effective for a very limited market.
4. Tracking the effectiveness of approved drugs in patients with different genetic make-up.
5. Developing appropriate methods to manage pharmacogenetic data.
6. International cooperation in conducting genetic studies.
7. Introducing simple DNA diagnostics for common genetic and infectious diseases in developing countries.
8. Genetics education at all levels from students to health professionals.
9. Communicating with the general public about genetic technology.

Sir David Weatherall, chair of the working group, said:

Personalised medicines show promise but they have undoubtedly been over-hyped. With the human genome sequenced, some people are expecting personalised medicines within a few years, but the reality is still many years away. There are some examples around today, but the complex multiple causes of diseases mean it will be at least 15 to 20 years before a patients genetic make-up is a major factor in determining which drugs they are prescribed.

ZDNet, September 21, 2005