Augmenting India's Medical Arsenal: Genomicswill Facilitate Developing New-age Medicines

Pranav Anam, Founder, The Gene Box explains how pharmacogenomics can create far reaching impact in the pharma industry such as addressing medicine wastage and establishing health equity

The global pharma market, of which India is an important part, expected to reach $1.5 trillion by the end of 2023. It is going through a rapid transition, hinging on technological advancements and innovation that adds value to the existing products. One of the best ways to add value to a product is to tailor it and suit individual needs. Pharma players have seized the opportunity as they added personalized medicine as a key focus area for growth – personalized medicine may transform the entire value chain, from early product development to go-to-market models.

The term pharmacogenomics was first used in the 1950s, and has become one of the mainstays of this breakneck growth – it is a scientific discipline that looks at how a person’s genetic makeup influences his or her response to drugs. According to estimates, as much as 40 per cent of the medicines people take every day are not effective; for some medicines, this may go up to 50 per cent. The value of wasted medicines, by the time we cross a quarter of the century, can well be the GDP of a cluster of small countries. Applying pharmacogenomics in the pharma industry can help address the wastage and establish health equity.

Pharmacogenomics helps to choose the right drug and dose