Government to Announce Gene-Mapping Plan for NHS Patients
Prime Minister David Cameron will today announce plans to sequence the genetic codes of up to 100,000 NHS patients suffering from cancer and rare diseases in the next three to five years.
The government has set aside £100 million for the project, which will go towards providing the skills and infrastructure necessary for genome sequencing on an unprecedented scale.
The UK will be the first country in the world to use DNA codes in the mainstream of the health service, with Cameron stating that “by unlocking the power of DNA data, the NHS will lead the global race for better tests, better drugs, and above all better care.” He also alluded to the benefit for UK researchers of having access to the data, which could lead to further advances in medicine.
Gene sequencing allows physicians to give their patients personalized treatments based on their genetic make-up, leading to improved health outcomes. One 2012 study showed that 70% of US and EU “primary care physicians, neurologists and cardiologists expect personalized medicine to become routine in their own clinical practice within five years”, yet cost has so far been a factor in restricting access to personalized medicine
The first human genome was sequenced in 2000, with a cost of approximately £500 million - although twelve years later the price has fallen to around £5000 - £10,000. Cameron's office predicts that in the next few years the sequencing of 100,000 patients' genomes in UK centers will drive down the cost even further, so that “we will soon be able to sequence the human genome for less than £1,000.”
The plan will also be of great benefit to pharmaceutical companies, who could use this data to develop new therapies better able to compete in markets where there is a value-based reimbursement approach.
The project has attracted criticism from some organizations concerned with how the data might be used. GeneWatch UK said that the anonymized database, which patients have to opt out of if they don't want their DNA code on the system, could “wipe out privacy” in the UK. Yet Professor Dame Sally Davies, Chief Medical Officer for England, welcomed the plan, saying that “single gene testing is already available across the NHS ranging from diagnosing cancers to assessing patients’ risk of suffering side effects from treatment. At the moment, these tests focus on diseases caused by changes in a single gene. This funding opens up the possibility of being able to look at the three billion DNA pieces in each of us so we can get a greater understanding of the complex relationship between our genes and lifestyle.”