Imagine going to your doctor’s office and finding out you have a specific disease, but instead of being put on a treatment that has worked well for most people, your doctor prescribes a medicine they know will work better for you, based on your background
That’s the goal of All of Us, a large federal database with information from more than 747,000 participants, which was recently recognized as the largest hub of genetic data globally. The project links genetic, lifestyle and environmental data, like where you live, to health outcomes, and it has the potential to change the way we practice medicine for the better, says Dr. Dan Roden, a professor of medicine in genetic medicine and clinical pharmacology at Vanderbilt University in Nashville
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“Now we have the opportunity to look at people’s genes, relate that to what they’re feeling or what the disease risk is, and come up with personalized treatments for those people who aren’t totally average,” Roden says
Historically, much of the research shaping medical care was based on people of European ancestry, meaning the findings didn’t always reflect the diversity of the American population. With All of Us, “we have completely changed that,” says Stephanie Devaney, chief operating officer of All of Us
From one-size-fits-all to precision medicine
The data from this expanded project, first launched in 2018, could help researchers identify which medications work best for certain people, which treatments might help prevent disease, and who may be at higher risk before symptoms appear. It could also point scientists toward new drug targets
“This rerg, chief medical and scientific officer and acting chief data officer of All of Us, said in a news release
Of the data collected so far, 62 percent is from people over the age of 50, says Hoda Anton-Culver, a distinguished professor at the University of California (UC), Irvine and principal investigator of the All of Us Southern California Consortium. Of those, about 16 percent are 50 to 59, 20 percent are 60 to 69, 18 percent are 70 to 79, 7 percent are 80 to 89, and approximately 1 percent are 90 or older
Older adults are a key group to study, Anton-Culver says, because diseases like diabetes, heart disease and Alzheimer’s disease are more common with age
