Better Sooner: when software eats science, precision medicine is born
Marc Andreessen famously said, “software is eating the world.” Many nowadays say that AI eats the software. What about clinical science and precision medicine? We're all so familiar with our phones, and there's so much technology in there working together seamlessly. The underlying science of precision medicine is well-developed. Why is it not simple to make all its elements work together seamlessly, too?
“Better Sooner” is a podcast with author, entrepreneur and group benefits executive Kevin Brady and Veronika Litinski, CEO of Pillcheck. Kevin encourages his clients and readers to gain control of the four wheels of health — nutrition, exercise, sleep and mindfulness. Who would disagree with Kevin’s message that it is Never Too Late to Be Healthy: Reaching Peak Health in Middle Age?
What are precision medicine and personalized healthcare?
We know that medications are not ‘one-size-fits-all. Everyone has genetic variations that impact how they respond to prescription drugs. Pharmacogenetic science is very powerful, but its insights have not been readily available outside the walls of large research centers. In the podcast, Veronika Litinski describes how collaboration between engineers and biologists brought a burgeoning science of pharmacogenetics to life.
Truly personalized health care combines two perspectives: that of the consumer and that of the health care organization. Enter Pillcheck, an affordable and accessible precision medicine service. This is a perfect place for software engineers and biologists to collaborate with experts in pharmacology and health insurance. Pillcheck tests for the genetic factors impacting drug response to over 70% of commonly used prescriptions. It assists individuals and their physicians optimize medication therapy to the person’s DNA.
Precision medicine empowers individuals and provides value for benefits plans
Healthcare isn’t a one-size-fits-all approach. How an illness manifests itself in one person could be very different from how it looks in another individual. Each patient may have different symptoms and require different treatment approaches to create their healthiest outcome. Kevin and Veronika agree that people need to take greater control of their lives, especially when navigating back to health after injury, mental health diagnosis or onset of a heart condition. In the conversation, they explore the value of precision medicine for benefits plans and individuals.
