Issa A M, Tufail W, Hutchinson J, Tenorio J, Baliga M Poonam
Department of Pharmacological and Pharmaceutical Sciences, College of Pharmacy, The Methodist Hospital Research Institute, University of Houston, Houston, Texas 77204-4021, USA.
Public Health Genomics. 2009;12(3):163-9. doi: 10.1159/000189629. Epub 2009 Feb 10.
BACKGROUND/AIMS: Although pharmacogenomics-based diagnostics and therapeutics are increasingly being translated into personalized medicine applications, relatively little evidence exists about how novel pharmacogenomics-based technologies will be accepted and adopted by patients. It is important to understand the characteristics of genomic diagnostics and targeted therapeutics that might impact utilization or serve as barriers to adoption of these novel technologies in order to formulate appropriate policies and procedures. The objective of this study was to investigate patients' understanding and knowledge of personalized medicine and the process of decision-making regarding pharmacogenomics testing and targeted therapeutics and to better understand how patients value receiving pharmacogenomics-based care.
We conducted 4 focus groups with 8-10 individuals in each group with patients recruited from out-patient clinics at The Methodist Hospital in Houston, Tex., USA.
The use of genomic diagnostics and targeted therapeutics to facilitate personalized medicine has considerable support from patients. However, our data revealed that participants were concerned with issues surrounding privacy and confidentiality of genetic test results, particularly with respect to access of information by insurers, with potential costs of testing and issues related to accuracy of test results. Questions regarding willingness to pay revealed that patients would be more willing to pay out-of-pocket if the disease associated with pharmacogenomic testing for treatment was perceived to be high risk (e.g., colorectal cancer) versus a chronic condition that was perceived as lower risk (e.g., high cholesterol).
As the personalized medicine approach is increasingly incorporated into health care, understanding patients' needs and their readiness to adopt these novel technologies will become progressively more important for the development of appropriate health policies.
背景/目的：尽管基于药物基因组学的诊断和治疗方法越来越多地被应用于个性化医疗中，但关于患者如何接受和采用这些新型药物基因组学技术的证据相对较少。了解可能影响这些新技术应用或成为其采用障碍的基因组诊断和靶向治疗的特点，对于制定适当的政策和程序非常重要。本研究的目的是调查患者对个性化医疗的理解和认识，以及关于药物基因组学检测和靶向治疗的决策过程，并更好地了解患者对接受基于药物基因组学的医疗服务的重视程度。
我们在美国得克萨斯州休斯顿卫理公会医院的门诊招募患者，进行了4个焦点小组讨论，每组8 - 10人。
利用基因组诊断和靶向治疗来促进个性化医疗得到了患者的大力支持。然而，我们的数据显示参与者担心基因检测结果的隐私和保密问题，特别是保险公司获取信息的问题、检测的潜在成本以及与检测结果准确性相关的问题。关于支付意愿的问题表明，如果与药物基因组学检测用于治疗相关的疾病被认为是高风险疾病（如结直肠癌），与被认为是低风险的慢性病（如高胆固醇）相比，患者更愿意自掏腰包支付费用。
随着个性化医疗方法越来越多地融入医疗保健中，了解患者的需求以及他们采用这些新技术的意愿对于制定适当的卫生政策将变得越来越重要。
