The 'New Era Of Medicine' Involves Matching Medications To DNA

According to a significant report, we have the technology to usher in a new era in medicine by accurately matching medications to people's genetic code.

Because of small changes in how our bodies function, some medications are rendered useless or even lethal.

A genetic test, according to the British Pharmacological Society and the Royal College of Physicians, can predict how effectively medications will work in your body.

Next year, the tests may be available on the NHS.

Your genetic code, also known as DNA, is a set of instructions for how your body works. Pharmacogenomi is the science of matching medications to your DNA.

Jane Burns of Liverpool, who lost two-thirds of her skin after a poor reaction to a new epilepsy treatment, could have benefited from it.

When she was 19, she was started on carbamazepine. She got a rash two weeks later, and her parents took her to A&E when she acquired a high temperature and began hallucinating.

The next morning, the skin damage began. "I remember waking up covered in blisters, it was like something out of a horror movie, it was like I'd been on fire," Jane recalled.

Jane Burns, aged 50, needs to be cautious in the heat and is "afraid" of new medications.

Stevens-Johnson syndrome, which affects the skin and is considerably more common in persons who are born with particular mutations in their genetic code, was triggered by her epilepsy medication.

Mrs Burns considers herself "very, extremely fortunate" and supports pharmacogenomic testing.

"It's a good thing if it saves your life."