Pharmaco Sensor

Medications don’t work the same for everyone

Ideally, medication helps treat a disease, alleviate symptoms, or even cure the patient. However, everyone responds differently to medications.

While some patients benefit greatly from medicinal treatment, others may experience undesirable side effects, and in some cases, these can be fatal.

How medications travel through the body

After administration (oral, intravenous, etc.), a medication enters the bloodstream and usually starts working. The body then uses an enzyme to prepare it for breakdown, which typically ends the medication’s effect. The deactivated drug is filtered by the kidneys and eventually excreted in the urine.

For medications meant to act over an extended period, such as blood thinners, they are often taken three times a day to maintain the right concentration of the active medication. This ensures a continuous effective dose that prevents issues like blood clots leading to thrombosis.

Genetic mutations can delay the breakdown of medications

Whether people tolerate certain medications or experience side effects depends largely on their genes. A number of genetic mutations can delay the breakdown of drugs, preventing them from working properly or even causing intolerance. The medication may continue to work in the bloodstream but isn’t prepped for breakdown, resulting in it staying in the body much longer.

While this may not cause issues with a single dose, taking the medication three times daily can lead to a buildup, causing toxic side effects. The initial therapeutic effect (e.g., blood thinning) becomes increasingly strong and can result in uncontrolled bleeding. This means patients with such genetic variations need a much lower dose of the medication.

It’s estimated that around 7% of hospital patients experience severe side effects, with approximately 0.4% of these cases resulting in death. Drug side effects are the fifth leading cause of death in the Western world, and many of these cases are due to inherited genetic mutations. Analyzing the related genes before administering medications can help prevent life-threatening complications and ensure optimal treatment success.

How does our Pharmaco Sensor work?

Our Pharmaco Sensor tests the submitted saliva sample for more than 70 gene variations that influence the effectiveness and tolerance of medications.

This genetic test evaluates the patient’s genetic profile to assess the effectiveness and potential side effects of over 2,000 common drugs.

We summarize the analysis results in a clear report and provide dosing recommendations based on the defined breakdown, activation, and conversion rates for each medication to ensure successful treatment.

With our Pharmaco Sensor, you can assess the risk of side effects and identify medications that may be intolerable for the patient.