Are Pharmacists the Missing Link in Precision Medicine?

 Could pharmacists be the bridge to a future where your medications and health plan are designed just for you? 

In this episode, Dr. Tamar Lawful unpacks why pharmacists may be the missing link in precision medicine. She explains how genetics can guide smarter medication choices, prevent side effects, and cut down on trial-and-error treatments. Through real stories and research, Dr. Lawful highlights how pharmacists’ unique expertise and vantage point position them to personalize care in ways most patients never realize. If you’ve ever wondered why precision medicine isn’t more common and how it could change your health -this episode is for you.

WHAT YOU’LL LEARN IN THIS EPISODE

• How pharmacogenomics helps match the right medication to your DNA
• Why pharmacists are uniquely positioned to lead in precision medicine
• Barriers keeping precision medicine from becoming standard care
• How nutrigenomics connects nutrition, medications, and your genes

Chapters

• 0:00 Healthcare's Pill-for-an-Ill Problem
• 1:36 Pharmacists as the Missing Link
• 4:24 Real-World Success with Pharmacogenomics
• 7:10 Barriers to Precision Medicine Adoption
• 12:21 Building the Bridge to Better Care
• 14:28 Episode Closing and Next Week Preview

Transcript

Speaker 1: 0:02

Medications certainly have their place, but what if there was a way to support your body naturally by working with your genetics? We are a pill for an ill society. We take 18 pills per person, per American, per day. It was so hard to find somebody who took my insurance and for me to get well it took thousands of dollars and and I thought what do regular people do? This is not right. Despite my best efforts, I wasn't actually reversing disease and helping people to heal in the way that I thought I would.

Speaker 1: 0:32

We want to empower yourselves to take care of this root cause. We don't just want to cover it up. If you're ready to break free from outdated, one-size-fits-all health care, you're in the right place. Welcome to Raise the Script with Nutrigenomics brought to you by InHer Glow®, by LYFE Balance. Here's a literature from. We are all unique, right down to our DNA, so it's no wonder we respond differently to the same medications, foods and environments. How do you discover what your body needs? Which medications, foods, supplements? How do you discover what your body needs, which medications, foods, supplements or exercises are right for you? How can you manage chronic conditions without piling on more prescriptions? That's what we're here to explore. I'm your host, Dr. Tamar Lawful doctor of pharmacy, nutrigenomics specialist, and your partner in reimagining how we personalize care for better outcomes, whether you're a patient or a practitioner. Let's raise the script and bring healthcare to higher levels together, because the future of health is personal. Welcome back to Raise the Script with Nutrigenomics. I'm your host, Dr. Tamar Lawful doctor of pharmacy, nutritional genomics specialist, and someone who believes healthcare should be designed for you, not just the average patient on a chart somewhere.

Speaker 1: 1:52

Today we're going to explore a question that I think is long overdue. Are pharmacists the missing link in precision medicine? And I'll be honest, I'm not here to just talk about what pharmacists could do. I want to paint a picture of what's possible, why it's not happening enough yet, and what changes when pharmacists are finally integrated into the precision medicine model. So if you've ever felt stuck in a healthcare loop of trial and error treatments or you've wondered why personalized medicine isn't more common, this episode is for you.

Speaker 1: 2:26

Let's start with a familiar scene. You've been struggling with a health condition. Maybe it's high blood pressure, maybe it's anxiety, maybe it's something that's been going on for years. You go to your doctor. They prescribe a medication, you try it and it sort of works, or maybe it doesn't. You go back and then try something else. Weeks pass, months pass, you're still not feeling great, but you're following the plan because, well, what else can you do? Now? Here's a twist. What if someone had looked at your genetic profile first? What if they could predict, based on your DNA, which medications are more likely to work for you, which ones might cause side effects and which ones might not work at all? That's not science fiction, that's precision medicine, and it's here right now. The problem is, most people aren't getting it.

Speaker 1: 3:23

Here's why I think pharmacists are the missing link. Pharmacists are trained to understand how drugs work in the body, how they're metabolized. That means how they're broken down, how they interact with each other and how different variables like age, kidney function, diet and, yes, genetics, change the way they work. We're also the ones who often have the full picture. Think about it. Your primary care provider might know what they prescribed you. Your cardiologist knows what they've prescribed you. Your dermatologist knows what they've prescribed you. But pharmacists, we see it all. We see every prescription from every doctor. We know the supplements you're taking. We notice patterns, like the medication you started six months ago. That lines up perfectly with when your new symptoms begin. That vantage point matters especially in precision medicine, where the goal is to treat the whole person, not just one condition in isolation.

Speaker 1: 4:23

Let me share a story. A gentleman in his late 50s came to me frustrated and, honestly, a little defeated. He'd been on the same blood pressure medication for years, but recently it wasn't working well. His doctor added a second medication, then a third, but his numbers were still unpredictable and he was starting to feel side effects, dizziness, fatigue, and just not himself. We decided to run a pharmacogenomic test. Basically, we looked at how his genes might be influencing the way he processed certain medications and we found something big. Two of the medications he was taking were in direct conflict with his genetic profile. His body wasn't metabolizing them efficiently, which meant they weren't doing their job and in some cases they were building up and causing side effects. After discussing the results with his physician, we made a medication change. Within a month his blood pressure stabilized, his energy improved and he no longer needed that third medication.

Speaker 1: 5:28

That's the power of combining pharmacogenomics with the pharmacist role. It's not just about matching a drug to a gene. It's about understanding how that information fits the bigger picture of the patient's life, other medications and health goals and this isn't just my personal experience, the research backs it up picture of the patient's life, other medications and health goals. And this isn't just my personal experience, the research backs it up. Studies have shown that when pharmacists lead or co-lead precision medicine initiatives, patients see better outcomes. In one review, pharmacists' driven pharmacogenomic programs reduced adverse drug reactions, improved medication inheritance and even shortened the time it took to find the right therapy. Think about antidepressants, for example.

Speaker 1: 6:09

For some people, finding the right one can be a long, frustrating process, trying one drug for weeks, then switching to another, all while still dealing with symptoms. With genetic testing we can often narrow that list from the start, save a month of trial and error, and pharmacists are uniquely skilled at interpreting that data and making practical recommendations. Skilled at interpreting that data and making practical recommendations. But here's the thing precision medicine isn't just about medications. It's also about lifestyle, nutrition and prevention. That's where nutrigenomics comes in understanding how your genes influence how you process nutrients, your risk of deficiencies, how your diet interacts with your health conditions and medications.

Speaker 1: 6:53

Let's say, someone has a genetic variant that makes it harder to absorb vitamin B12. That's important to know if they're on metformin or diabetes, which can further lower B12 levels. If no one connects those dots, they could end up with fatigue, nerve issues and other complications, all while thinking their medication is the only factor. Pharmacists can connect those dots. We can say, hey, based on your genetics, your diet and your medication list, here's where you might need a supplement or a dietary change or a different medication altogether. That's precision medicine in its truest form personalized, actionable and preventative.

Speaker 1: 7:35

So why isn't this happening everywhere? This is a million-dollar question, because when you hear what's possible, when you realize we could be matching people with the right treatment from the start, it's hard not to think why aren't we doing this for everyone? Well, there are a few layers to that answer. First, there's the awareness gap. Many patients don't even know pharmacogenomic or nutrigenomic testing exists. They've never had a provider mention it and they may assume the only time genetic testing is relevant is for ancestry reports or if they have a family history of certain diseases. If you don't know the tools exist, you're not going to ask for it, and if patients aren't asking, providers often don't think to offer it, especially if it's not a built-in part of their workflow. And, quite honestly, there are a lot of providers who are not aware of these type of tests.

Speaker 1: 8:34

That leads to the second barrier integration into healthcare systems. Even if a provider orders the test, the results might come back in a PDF that lives outside the electronic health record. There's no pop-up that says, hey, this patient has a CYP2C19 variant record. There's no pop-up that says, hey, this patient has a CYP2C19 variant, avoid this medication. Instead, the information gets buried in scanned documents or separate portals. Without smooth integration into the systems providers use every day, the data just doesn't get acted on consistently.

Speaker 1: 9:08

Third is training and confidence. Not all healthcare professionals feel comfortable interpreting genetic data. Many never had a single lecture on pharmacogenomics in school, or if they did, it was brief and theoretical. So even if the test results are available, they may hesitate to apply them, worried about misinterpretation or unsure how to translate the information into a clear treatment plan. This is where pharmacists can shine, because we're already trained to think in terms of metabolism, drug interactions and patient-specific variables. But if other team members don't know we can do this, that expertise goes untapped. Then there's the reimbursement problem. Let's be real A lot of what gets adopted in healthcare comes down to how it's paid for.

Speaker 1: 9:57

In some cases, insurance will cover pharmacogenomic testing, but often it's only for specific conditions, like certain cancer treatments or cardiac drugs, and usually after a patient has already tried and failed one or more medications. That's completely backwards, because the whole point is to avoid the trial and error in the first place, right? When it comes to nutrigenomic testing, it's even a bigger challenge. Right now, most health insurance plans in the US do not cover nutrigenomic testing at all. This type of testing looks at how your genes affect nutrient absorption, metabolism and dietary needs, and, while it has a huge potential for preventative care, insurance often see it as a non-essential or lifestyle information rather than medical necessity. That means the cost typically falls on the patient and these tests tend to be $300 or more. On top of that, in many states pharmacists can't directly bill for the time spent reviewing genetic results and creating a personalized plan unless there's a collaborative practice agreement in place. So even when we have the expertise, the tools and the patient interest, the payment model doesn't always support putting it into action.

Speaker 1: 11:13

Another factor is perception. Precision medicine sounds high-tech and for some that triggers skepticism. Patients may wonder is this just another expensive trend? Some providers may see it as extra work on top of already heavy workloads. Testing is offered and interpreted. The inconsistency can make people hesitant to trust it fully. And finally, there's inertia the natural resistance to change. Medicine is a tradition heavy field. Okay. New approaches, especially ones that change established roles and workflows, can take years to become standard practice. That's not always because people don't care. Sometimes it's because they've been burned by the next big thing before and they want to see years of data before making it part of their routine. So when you stack all these together lack of awareness, poor integration, limited training, reimbursement challenges, skepticism and resistance to change it's not surprising that precision medicine hasn't exploded into every corner of healthcare yet. But here's the thing none of these barriers are permanent. They can be addressed and pharmacists are in a prime position to help knock them down by educating patients, advocating for better systems, taking on leadership roles in precision medicine programs, improving the value through real world results.

Speaker 1: 12:42

If you're listening to this as a patient, here's what I want you to take away your pharmacist is one of the most accessible healthcare professionals you have. You don't need an appointment. You can walk in, ask questions and start a conversation about whether precision medicine might help you. And yes, your pharmacist can be the one to order a genetic test, interpret the results and collaborate with your doctor to adjust your care. And if you run into a pharmacist that does not know they can do this, send them my way. Okay, if you're listening.

Speaker 1: 13:12

As a pharmacist, I want you to see the opportunity here. You already have the expertise. You already know how to review medications, spot interactions and optimize therapy. Adding pharmacogenomics to your skill set isn't about starting from scratch. It's about deepening the impact you can have, and adding on nutrigenomics as well can truly help you personalize your patient's health, and for both patients and pharmacists. The more we talk about this, the more it becomes a normal part of care. Imagine a world where you start a new medication knowing it's a good match for your biology, your lifestyle and your other treatments. Imagine catching a potential problem before it becomes a side effect or a hospital visit or a chronic complication. That's the world precision medicine promises, and I believe pharmacists are the bridge to get us there.

Speaker 1: 14:04

If this episode got you thinking differently about what pharmacists can do, I'd love for you to share it with your pharmacist, your doctor or a friend who's been struggling to find the right treatment. The more we spread the word, the faster we can close the gap between what's possible in healthcare and what's actually happening. Coming up next week on the show, we're talking about why I call those I serve clients instead of patients and how that simple shift can transform your health. We'll unpack why the words you use to describe yourself can influence whether you stay stuck in a passive role or step up as a CEO of your own wellness, and I'll share how this small mindset change can help you engage more fully, feel more confident and take ownership of your health journey. Talk to you next Friday. Until then, always remember to raise a script on health, because together we can bring healthcare to higher levels. Raise the Script with Nutrigenomics is a production of InHer® Glow by LYFE Balance.