Personalised medicine is an increasing possibility thanks to new algorithms, says GlobalData

According to data and analytics company, GlobalData, personalised medicine is becoming an increasing possibility for patients as a result of newly developed algorithms and the use of big data.

Using a specially developed algorithm, researchers from the McLean Hospital in Massachusetts were able to identify patients that may respond best to antidepressants, before they begin treatment. The study demonstrated that around a third of patients would gain some therapeutic benefit from receiving an antidepressant, with older patients characterised as suffering from more severe depression and negative emotionality who also demonstrated better cognitive control on computerised tasks, being the most likely to benefit.

In a recent report, GlobalData demonstrated that despite there being several different classes of drugs prescribed to patients for the treatment of depression, many of them have poor efficacy or safety profiles, leading to complications and discontinuation of medication.

“It is estimated that one in three patients do not respond well to the first anti-depressant they are prescribed, and this can lead to difficulties in the future which require medical attention. This puts extra strain on national health services that are already under the pressure of a growing, and aging, population,” commented Rahael Maladwala, neurology analyst at GlobalData. “Studies are like this are just the beginning, as technology improves the hope is that physicians will not just be able to tell whether a patient is suited to pharmacological treatment or not, but which specific medication a patient is likely get the highest therapeutic benefit from.

“Personalised medication is inching closer and closer to becoming a reality and could potentially be commonplace for patients in the next 20 years, not just for depression and neurology but across all therapy areas. This in turn means that patients suffer from fewer complications, treatment failures, or adverse events and receive a higher quality of care and reduce the burden on healthcare providers.”