Exploring Patients' Perceptions of Pharmacogenetic Therapy for Heart Disease: A Phenomenological Study
Main Article Content
Abstract
Pharmacogenetics is a rapidly evolving field within personalized medicine that focuses on how genetic variations influence individual responses to medications. Despite its clinical promise, little is known about how patients perceive and experience pharmacogenetic therapies, particularly in the context of heart disease. While prior research has examined the clinical outcomes of pharmacogenetics, there remains a significant gap in understanding the emotional, social, and psychological factors that influence patient engagement with personalized treatment. This study addresses this gap by employing a phenomenological approach to explore the lived experiences of patients undergoing pharmacogenetic therapy for heart disease. A total of 30 patients were interviewed, providing rich insights into their perceptions. Using qualitative analysis of in-depth interviews, the study identified key themes related to patient understanding, emotional concerns, and social support, which influenced their acceptance and adherence to treatment. The findings suggest that patients' perceptions and social contexts are crucial to understanding their experiences with pharmacogenetic therapies and should be considered in clinical practice. These results highlight the need for more patient-centered approaches in personalized medicine and offer important implications for future research on the psychosocial dimensions of pharmacogenetic treatments.
Article Details
Section
This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International License.
References
Brown, L. C., Graham, J., Fisher, D., Adams, R., Seligmann, J., Seymour, M., Kaplan, R., Yates, E., Parmar, M., Richman, S. D., Quirke, P., Butler, R., Shiu, K., Middleton, G., Samuel, L., Wilson, R. H., & Maughan, T. S. (2022). Experiences of running a stratified medicine adaptive platform trial: Challenges and lessons learned from 10 years of the FOCUS4 trial in metastatic colorectal cancer. Clinical Trials, 19(2), 146–157. Scopus. https://doi.org/10.1177/17407745211069879
Castellino, S., Lareau, N. M., & Groseclose, M. R. (2021). The emergence of imaging mass spectrometry in drug discovery and development: Making a difference by driving decision making. Journal of Mass Spectrometry, 56(8). Scopus. https://doi.org/10.1002/jms.4717
Cona, M. S., Mancuso, A. M., Russo, A., Rota, S., Piva, S., & La Verde, N. (2022). Fight against cancer in Italy: What patients, caregivers and healthy citizens think about care delivery from National Health System. European Journal of Cancer Care, 31(6). Scopus. https://doi.org/10.1111/ecc.13763
Drown, L., Amberbir, A., Teklu, A. M., Zelalem, M., Tariku, A., Tadesse, Y., Gebeyehu, S., Semu, Y., Ntawukuriryayo, J. T., VanderZanden, A., Binagwaho, A., & Hirschhorn, L. R. (2024). Reducing the equity gap in under-5 mortality through an innovative community health program in Ethiopia: An implementation research study. BMC Pediatrics, 23(Suppl 1). Scopus. https://doi.org/10.1186/s12887-023-04388-1
Heck, C. J., Kripke, K., Dam, A., Torres-Rueda, S., Bozzani, F., Obermeyer, C., Yohannes, K., Deacon, J., Meyers, K., Quigee, D., Wiant, S., Forsythe, S., Malati, C., Larson, M., Sobieszczyk, M. E., & Castor, D. (2024). Leveraging international stakeholders’ experiences with oral PrEP costs to accelerate implementation of the monthly dapivirine vaginal ring: A qualitative study. Health Research Policy and Systems, 22(1). Scopus. https://doi.org/10.1186/s12961-024-01240-5
Kasande, M., Nakidde, G., Taremwa, M., Tusimiirwe, H., Lamulatu, K., Amanyire, M., & Kabami, J. (2022). Experiences and Perceptions on Community Client-Led ART Delivery (CCLADS) Model of Antiretroviral (ART) Delivery: Patients’ and Providers’ Perspectives in South Western Uganda. HIV/AIDS - Research and Palliative Care, 14, 539–551. Scopus. https://doi.org/10.2147/HIV.S387190
Kavanaugh, M. L., & Zolna, M. R. (2023). Where Do Reproductive-Aged Women Want to Get Contraception? Journal of Women’s Health, 32(6), 657–669. Scopus. https://doi.org/10.1089/jwh.2022.0406
Klein, K., Stolk, P., Tellner, P., Acha, V., Montagne, S., & Stöckert, I. (2022). Regulatory Flexibilities and Guidances for Addressing the Challenges of COVID-19 in the EU: What Can We Learn from Company Experiences? Therapeutic Innovation and Regulatory Science, 56(2), 366–377. Scopus. https://doi.org/10.1007/s43441-022-00383-3
Kósa, D., Peto, Á., Fenyvesi, F., Váradi, J., Vecsernyés, M., Gonda, S., Vasas, G., Fehér, P., Bácskay, I., & Ujhelyi, Z. (2021). Formulation of novel liquid crystal (Lc) formulations with skin-permeation-enhancing abilities of plantago lanceolata (pl) extract and their assessment on hacat cells. Molecules, 26(4). Scopus. https://doi.org/10.3390/molecules26041023
Li, D., Sun, L., Shi, L., Zhang, Y., Liu, J., Qiu, M., Ma, Y., Kou, N., Song, W., Zhuo, L., Yang, L., Wang, Y., Yan, X., Ye, T., & Wang, S. (2024). Fabrication of natural microcapsule with intrinsic core–shell structure as building blocks for achieving source control of obesity. Chemical Engineering Journal, 493. Scopus. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.cej.2024.152585
Manogue, C. E., Chen, W., Mazza, A., Dang, A., Lewis, B., Wallis, C. J. D., Layton, J., Barata, P., Sartor, O., & Harris, K. M. (2022). Embracing the Practical Aspects of Theranostics With Prostate-Specific Membrane Antigen–Targeted Lutetium-177. Practical Radiation Oncology, 12(4), 300–304. Scopus. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.prro.2022.01.008
Panotopoulos, C., Athanasiou, G., Stavropoulos, S., Boutos, N., Rao, S., Panayotou, G., Venkataramana, N. K., & Ronquist, G. (2025). Elimination of High-grade Gliomas Through Induced Cytolysis, Elucidated by Two Patient Cases. Anticancer Research, 45(1), 201–207. Scopus. https://doi.org/10.21873/anticanres.17405
Ralph, A. P., McGrath, S. Y., Armstrong, E., Herdman, R. M., Ginnivan, L., Lowell, A., Lee, B., Gorham, G., Taylor, S., Hefler, M., & Kerrigan, V. (2023). Improving outcomes for hospitalised First Nations peoples though greater cultural safety and better communication: The Communicate Study Partnership study protocol. Implementation Science, 18(1). Scopus. https://doi.org/10.1186/s13012-023-01276-1
Richter, J. G., Chehab, G., Schwartz, C., Ricken, E., Tomczak, M., Acar, H., Gappa, H., Velasco, C. A., Rosengren, P., Povilionis, A., Schneider, M., & Thestrup, J. (2021). The PICASO cloud platform for improved holistic care in rheumatoid arthritis treatment—Experiences of patients and clinicians. Arthritis Research and Therapy, 23(1). Scopus. https://doi.org/10.1186/s13075-021-02526-7
Subasri, M., Barrett, D., Sibalija, J., Bitacola, L., & Kim, R. B. (2021). Pharmacogenomic-based personalized medicine: Multistakeholder perspectives on implementational drivers and barriers in the Canadian healthcare system. Clinical and Translational Science, 14(6), 2231–2241. Scopus. https://doi.org/10.1111/cts.13083
Viegas, R., Dineen-Griffin, S., Söderlund, L.-Å., Acosta-Gómez, J., & Guiu, J. M. (2022). Telepharmacy and pharmaceutical care: A narrative review by International Pharmaceutical Federation. Farmacia Hospitalaria, 46, 86–91. Scopus. https://doi.org/10.7399/fh.13244