Breadcrumb Home Resources What is Personalized Genomic Medicine? What is Personalized Genomic Medicine? Main navigation What is Personalized Genomic Medicine? How to Draw a Pedigree How does genetic testing work? What is Genetic Counseling? NHGRI and PGM NIH and PGM AMA and PGM What is PGM? What is personalized genomic medicine (PGM)? Personalized genomic medicine is a way to improve your health using your family history, medical history, genetic information, and lifestyleThe four Ps of personalized genomic medicine are:Personalized: risks are uniquely yoursPredictive: predicts the chances of developing certain disordersPreventive: based on genetic test results and specific lifestyle behaviors, offers healthy solutions to decrease disease riskParticipatory: requires your involvement What is genetic information? Information about your genome (your DNA), which includes:Family health historyDiseases and risks of health problems thatrun in your familyFamily stories What is the human genome? The human genome contains all of a person’s genetic informationIt is made of DNAIt is a series of 3 billion base pairs, the building blocks of DNABase pairs consist of letters (A, C, G, T) that are the code to make 20,000 to 30,000 genesGenes are the instructions for our bodies What can personalized genomic medicine do for me? It may help diagnose a disease you already haveIt may help your doctor decide which medicine and how much of that medicine will work best for you (pharmacogenomics)It may tell you if you are at risk to develop a disease in the future What kind of diseases can personalized genomic medicine tell me about? Diseases that run in your familyRare diseasesCommon diseases such as diabetes, which are caused by both DNA changes and your environment What can personalized genomic medicine not tell me? We do not fully understand all diseases at this timeWe do not fully understand all genes or all of their changes at this timeIt cannot tell you when you will develop diseaseIt may or may not be able to tell you how severe the disease will be Why haven’t I heard of personalized genomic medicine until now? Scientists and doctors are using recent research discoveries to improve medical careRecently, new DNA tests make studying your DNA easier, faster, and cheaper than in the pastThe new tests can give detailed information about:Specific genes (targeted sequence capture)All of the genes that make proteins in a person (wholeexome sequencing)All of the DNA in your genome (whole genome sequencing) How do I learn more about personalized genomic medicine? You can talk to your doctor about PGMYou can contact a genetic counselorVisit the National Society of Genetic Counselors (NSGC) online directory to find a genetic counselor (www.nsgc.org)