Optimizing pharmacogenomic decision-making by data science

Abstract

Healthcare systems have made rapid progress towards combining data science with precision medicine, particularly in pharmacogenomics. With the lack of predictability in medication effectiveness from patient to patient, acquiring the specifics of their genotype would be highly advantageous for patient treatment. Genotype-guided dosing adjustment improves clinical decision-making and helps optimize doses to deliver medications with greater efficacy and within safe margins. Current databases demand extensive effort to locate relevant genetic dosing information. To address this problem, Patient Optimization Pharmacogenomics (POPGx) was constructed. The objective of this paper is to describe the development of POPGx, a tool to simplify the approach for healthcare providers to determine pharmacogenomic dosing recommendations for patients taking multiple medications. Additionally, this tool educates patients on how their allele variations may impact gene function in case they need further healthcare consultations. POPGx was created on Konstanz Information Miner (KNIME). KNIME is a modular environment that allows users to conduct code-free data analysis. The POPGx workflow can access Clinical Pharmacogenomics Implementation Consortium (CPIC) guidelines and subsequently be able to present relevant dosing and counseling information. A KNIME representational state transfer (REST) application program interface (API) node was established to retrieve information from CPIC and drugs that are exclusively metabolized through CYP450, and these drugs were processed simultaneously to demonstrate competency of the workflow. The POPGx program provides a time-efficient method for users to retrieve relevant, patient-specific medication selection and dosing recommendations. Users input metabolizer gene, genetic allele data, and medication list to retrieve clear dosing information. The program is automated to display current guideline recommendations from CPIC. The integration of this program into healthcare systems has the potential to revolutionize patient care by giving healthcare practitioners an easy way to prescribe medications with greater efficacy and safety by utilizing the latest advancements in the field of pharmacogenomics.