The pharmacy at Shoppers Drug Mart at Pine Centre Mall is part of a research project where saliva testing will provide genetic information to be acquired, assessed and used to guide drug therapy decisions.
The local pharmacy is one of five locations in B.C. that will be part of the pilot project set to begin in January to study how genetic makeup, or the genome of an individual, can predict their response to medications.
The research component of the project is led by a team at the University of British Columbia Faculty of Pharmaceutical Sciences (UBC) and is fully funded by Genome BC and the BC Pharmacy Association, so there is no cost to the patient.
During the project, the UBC team, led by researcher Dr. Corey Nislow, will develop strict operating procedures for sample collection, processing and sequencing.
Training and educational tools for patient awareness will also be developed.
The project will focus on an anticoagulant or blood thinner called warfarin, a medication that usually needs some adjustments to dosage before a patient finds the optimum amount to suit their needs. Warfarin is most commonly used for patients with an irregular heartbeat that can lead to blood clots.
"It's a simple procedure," said Matt Preston, the pharmacist that is part of the project located at the Shoppers Drug Mart at Pine Centre Mall. "Basically, the patient will be spitting into a small tube a few times, which will have collected some of the buccal cells from the cheek that provides plenty of really good DNA."
This type of testing is non-invasive and provides a stable sample that does not require refrigeration, Preston explained.
Recruitment for patients will get the project underway in January.
"Here at the pharmacy, we know our patients really well, which helps when it comes to approaching them and asking if they would like to participate in the study," said Preston, 36, who is a new graduate from UBC, where the focus is patient centred.
The ultimate goal of genetic testing is to create a new phase of personalized medicine, where the right treatment will be prescribed to the right patient at the right time.
