Using Genetics to Fight Disease

In January, President Obama launched the Precision Medicine Initiative, a far-reaching national program aimed at incorporating individual variability in genes, environment, and lifestyle into the treatment of diseases. The initiative incorporates genomic medicine, a growing medical field that applies individual genetic information and variation to better tailor clinical care for each patient. The goal: to make a difference for the millions of Americans facing illness, improve treatment options, and revolutionize everyday clinical practice.

Federal Practitioner talked with Eric Green, MD, PhD, the director of NIH’s National Human Genome Research Institute about how the NIH is using genomics to meet the goals of the Precision Medicine Initiative and its impact on the future of medicine.

Click below to hear the full discussion.

Federal Practitioner: What is precision and personalized medicine?

Dr. Eric Green: Genomic medicine is something that reflects the use of genomic information about an individual patient to tailor their clinical care. That is very much focused on genomic information, but of course, there are other components of disease beyond genomics and genetics. It is not all in our DNA. There are also aspects of everyday life that influence our health and our well-being and our risk for diseases such as our diet, our lifestyle, what things we are exposed to in the environment, and so forth.

A larger framing of the notion of individualizing medical care around each individual’s makeup in terms of their blueprint and what they are exposed to brings us to phrases like personalized medicine or individualized medicine. More recently, the phrase that has been used is precision medicine. Precision medicine, essentially, takes a broader view of what are the things that contribute to health and disease. It is genomics, it is lifestyle, it is diet, it is environmental exposures, and then thinking about how to tailor medical treatment based on taking those individual aspects of a person into account.

FP: How can genomics be applied to hematology and oncology?

EG: Some of the earliest applications of using genomic information to tailor medical care come in the area of cancer; in particular, some of the leukemias that are studied and treated every day in hospitals around the world where we have learned by taking samples from individuals who have certain types of leukemia and opening up their genomes. In those tumor samples, in those leukemia samples, there turns out to be some very characteristic genomic changes that have taken place that are basically driving those cancers and making them behave the way they do.

It is now standard practice for some hematologic disorders, in particular types of leukemia, to consider getting genomic information on that specific patient—a blood sample—in order to help guide the best way to treat the patient and to get information about prognosis. It is only going to get more exciting and more advanced over the next 5 and 10 years.

FP: Why do you think this topic warrants discussion?

EG: I think this warrants discussing in almost any clinical group, because I completely believe that over the next 5 to 10 years, many aspects of medicine are going to be changed because of genomics. It is not going to just be in certain areas of medicine; I think it is going to be in almost all areas of medicine. This makes it very relevant to talk to clinical groups about this fast-moving area and how it will find its way into clinical practice in the next few years.

FP: You will be presenting the keynote presentation at the 2015 AVAHO Meeting in Washington, DC, in October. Are you excited to bring the discussion of genomics to AVAHO?

EG: I talk to clinical groups all the time, because I firmly believe this is going to be really important for them to know. I also fully appreciate that the field has moved so quickly that a lot of people who are out there in practice—whether they are physicians, pharmacists, nurses, physician assistants, or genetic counselors—when they were trained even 5, or 10, or 20 years ago, the things that we can do know using genomic information simply weren’t known about then. It is very important for us to use professional meetings as venues for furthering the education of professionals, especially in fast-moving fields where this is a great opportunity for them to catch up on what the latest is.

FP: Is there anything else you would like to say?

EG: The Precision Medicine Initiative aims to accelerate progress in precision medicine so that people in the United States can be the beneficiaries of these exciting developments. I think it is going to be an important partnership with scientists and practicing physicians to make this a reality, so it is really important for us to be talking about these things.

Don't have time to listen to the entire discussion? We understand. Use this guide to skip ahead to the topic that most interests you.

1:04 What is genomic medicine?
2:36 What is precision medicine?
3:48 How can genomics be used in hematology and oncology?
6:25 How is genomics changing the future of medicine?
7:22 Why should clinical groups like AVAHO learn about genomics?
8:20 How is the Precision Medicine Initiative using genomics?

In January, President Obama launched the Precision Medicine Initiative, a far-reaching national program aimed at incorporating individual variability in genes, environment, and lifestyle into the treatment of diseases. The initiative incorporates genomic medicine, a growing medical field that applies individual genetic information and variation to better tailor clinical care for each patient. The goal: to make a difference for the millions of Americans facing illness, improve treatment options, and revolutionize everyday clinical practice.

Federal Practitioner talked with Eric Green, MD, PhD, the director of NIH’s National Human Genome Research Institute about how the NIH is using genomics to meet the goals of the Precision Medicine Initiative and its impact on the future of medicine.

Click below to hear the full discussion.

Federal Practitioner: What is precision and personalized medicine?

Dr. Eric Green: Genomic medicine is something that reflects the use of genomic information about an individual patient to tailor their clinical care. That is very much focused on genomic information, but of course, there are other components of disease beyond genomics and genetics. It is not all in our DNA. There are also aspects of everyday life that influence our health and our well-being and our risk for diseases such as our diet, our lifestyle, what things we are exposed to in the environment, and so forth.

A larger framing of the notion of individualizing medical care around each individual’s makeup in terms of their blueprint and what they are exposed to brings us to phrases like personalized medicine or individualized medicine. More recently, the phrase that has been used is precision medicine. Precision medicine, essentially, takes a broader view of what are the things that contribute to health and disease. It is genomics, it is lifestyle, it is diet, it is environmental exposures, and then thinking about how to tailor medical treatment based on taking those individual aspects of a person into account.

FP: How can genomics be applied to hematology and oncology?

EG: Some of the earliest applications of using genomic information to tailor medical care come in the area of cancer; in particular, some of the leukemias that are studied and treated every day in hospitals around the world where we have learned by taking samples from individuals who have certain types of leukemia and opening up their genomes. In those tumor samples, in those leukemia samples, there turns out to be some very characteristic genomic changes that have taken place that are basically driving those cancers and making them behave the way they do.

It is now standard practice for some hematologic disorders, in particular types of leukemia, to consider getting genomic information on that specific patient—a blood sample—in order to help guide the best way to treat the patient and to get information about prognosis. It is only going to get more exciting and more advanced over the next 5 and 10 years.

FP: Why do you think this topic warrants discussion?

EG: I think this warrants discussing in almost any clinical group, because I completely believe that over the next 5 to 10 years, many aspects of medicine are going to be changed because of genomics. It is not going to just be in certain areas of medicine; I think it is going to be in almost all areas of medicine. This makes it very relevant to talk to clinical groups about this fast-moving area and how it will find its way into clinical practice in the next few years.

FP: You will be presenting the keynote presentation at the 2015 AVAHO Meeting in Washington, DC, in October. Are you excited to bring the discussion of genomics to AVAHO?

EG: I talk to clinical groups all the time, because I firmly believe this is going to be really important for them to know. I also fully appreciate that the field has moved so quickly that a lot of people who are out there in practice—whether they are physicians, pharmacists, nurses, physician assistants, or genetic counselors—when they were trained even 5, or 10, or 20 years ago, the things that we can do know using genomic information simply weren’t known about then. It is very important for us to use professional meetings as venues for furthering the education of professionals, especially in fast-moving fields where this is a great opportunity for them to catch up on what the latest is.

FP: Is there anything else you would like to say?

EG: The Precision Medicine Initiative aims to accelerate progress in precision medicine so that people in the United States can be the beneficiaries of these exciting developments. I think it is going to be an important partnership with scientists and practicing physicians to make this a reality, so it is really important for us to be talking about these things.

Don't have time to listen to the entire discussion? We understand. Use this guide to skip ahead to the topic that most interests you.

1:04 What is genomic medicine?
2:36 What is precision medicine?
3:48 How can genomics be used in hematology and oncology?
6:25 How is genomics changing the future of medicine?
7:22 Why should clinical groups like AVAHO learn about genomics?
8:20 How is the Precision Medicine Initiative using genomics?

In January, President Obama launched the Precision Medicine Initiative, a far-reaching national program aimed at incorporating individual variability in genes, environment, and lifestyle into the treatment of diseases. The initiative incorporates genomic medicine, a growing medical field that applies individual genetic information and variation to better tailor clinical care for each patient. The goal: to make a difference for the millions of Americans facing illness, improve treatment options, and revolutionize everyday clinical practice.

Federal Practitioner talked with Eric Green, MD, PhD, the director of NIH’s National Human Genome Research Institute about how the NIH is using genomics to meet the goals of the Precision Medicine Initiative and its impact on the future of medicine.

Click below to hear the full discussion.

Federal Practitioner: What is precision and personalized medicine?

Dr. Eric Green: Genomic medicine is something that reflects the use of genomic information about an individual patient to tailor their clinical care. That is very much focused on genomic information, but of course, there are other components of disease beyond genomics and genetics. It is not all in our DNA. There are also aspects of everyday life that influence our health and our well-being and our risk for diseases such as our diet, our lifestyle, what things we are exposed to in the environment, and so forth.

A larger framing of the notion of individualizing medical care around each individual’s makeup in terms of their blueprint and what they are exposed to brings us to phrases like personalized medicine or individualized medicine. More recently, the phrase that has been used is precision medicine. Precision medicine, essentially, takes a broader view of what are the things that contribute to health and disease. It is genomics, it is lifestyle, it is diet, it is environmental exposures, and then thinking about how to tailor medical treatment based on taking those individual aspects of a person into account.

FP: How can genomics be applied to hematology and oncology?

EG: Some of the earliest applications of using genomic information to tailor medical care come in the area of cancer; in particular, some of the leukemias that are studied and treated every day in hospitals around the world where we have learned by taking samples from individuals who have certain types of leukemia and opening up their genomes. In those tumor samples, in those leukemia samples, there turns out to be some very characteristic genomic changes that have taken place that are basically driving those cancers and making them behave the way they do.

It is now standard practice for some hematologic disorders, in particular types of leukemia, to consider getting genomic information on that specific patient—a blood sample—in order to help guide the best way to treat the patient and to get information about prognosis. It is only going to get more exciting and more advanced over the next 5 and 10 years.

FP: Why do you think this topic warrants discussion?

EG: I think this warrants discussing in almost any clinical group, because I completely believe that over the next 5 to 10 years, many aspects of medicine are going to be changed because of genomics. It is not going to just be in certain areas of medicine; I think it is going to be in almost all areas of medicine. This makes it very relevant to talk to clinical groups about this fast-moving area and how it will find its way into clinical practice in the next few years.

FP: You will be presenting the keynote presentation at the 2015 AVAHO Meeting in Washington, DC, in October. Are you excited to bring the discussion of genomics to AVAHO?

EG: I talk to clinical groups all the time, because I firmly believe this is going to be really important for them to know. I also fully appreciate that the field has moved so quickly that a lot of people who are out there in practice—whether they are physicians, pharmacists, nurses, physician assistants, or genetic counselors—when they were trained even 5, or 10, or 20 years ago, the things that we can do know using genomic information simply weren’t known about then. It is very important for us to use professional meetings as venues for furthering the education of professionals, especially in fast-moving fields where this is a great opportunity for them to catch up on what the latest is.

FP: Is there anything else you would like to say?

EG: The Precision Medicine Initiative aims to accelerate progress in precision medicine so that people in the United States can be the beneficiaries of these exciting developments. I think it is going to be an important partnership with scientists and practicing physicians to make this a reality, so it is really important for us to be talking about these things.

Don't have time to listen to the entire discussion? We understand. Use this guide to skip ahead to the topic that most interests you.

1:04 What is genomic medicine?
2:36 What is precision medicine?
3:48 How can genomics be used in hematology and oncology?
6:25 How is genomics changing the future of medicine?
7:22 Why should clinical groups like AVAHO learn about genomics?
8:20 How is the Precision Medicine Initiative using genomics?