Scotland at forefront of genetic medicine revolution
May 2017: The NHS and University collaborative research initiative, the Scottish Genomes partnership, featured in the Sunday Herald news.
The report by Judith Duffy on 28th May highlighted that this large-scale, collaborative research initiative is aiming to put Scotland at the forefront of the genetic medicine revolution.
This project, which brings together leading experts from across Scottish universities and the NHS Scotland, will assess whether whole genome sequencing – analysing an individual’s entire DNA sequence – should be in everyday use for the health service.
When this technology was first introduced a decade ago, it cost more than £1 billion to read a person’s entire genetic code. Now the cost has dropped to around £1,000 and it involves just a simple blood test for the patient.
Whilst the study is currently ongoing, there is potential for the NHS in Scotland to soon be routinely using tests which unravel a patient’s entire genetic code to diagnose complex diseases.