The Intersection of Precision Medicine and CNS Disorders
15 March, 2020
Precision medicine, sometimes known as "personalized medicine" is an approach to tailoring treatment that takes into account differences in people's genes, environments, and lifestyles. Precision medicine is a move away from a one-size-fits-all approach toward an approach with the goal to target the right treatments to the right patients at the right time.
The field of oncology has been at the forefront of the precision medicine revolution and has up to now the majority of all approved precision medicine molecules. This is largely because of the enhanced molecular characterization of tumors, linking genes to disease states and prognosis and, ultimately, more effective precise treatments.
Today, many of the lessons learned from the use of precision medicine in oncology could be applied to disorders that affect the brain. One of the similarities that cancer and CNS disorders like Alzheimer’s disease share is that they are a broad spectrum of diseases. This variety in disease pathophysiology provides an opportunity to identify and differentiate patient populations that might be more receptive to a particular treatment.
At Anavex Life Sciences Corp., a clinical stage biopharmaceutical company, we are engaged in the development of therapeutics by applying precision medicine to CNS diseases with high unmet need in currently three ongoing clinical studies: Rett syndrome, Parkinson’s disease dementia and Alzheimer’s disease. Anavex analyzes genomic data from these clinical studies to confirm previously identified biomarkers, which selects patients that will receive the therapeutic benefit for the treatment of both neurodegenerative and neurodevelopmental diseases.
To learn more about how precision medicine is playing an increasingly vital role in CNS drug development, view the recording of the webinar below.