Grant: CIHR Fellowship

The use and prescription of drugs is one of the most common medical interventions, yet sometimes they do not have the intended outcomes, and the drugs that are designed to reinstate the health of patients, have permanently debilitating or fatal side effects. Important factors that contribute towards patients experiencing severe adverse drug reactions or suboptimal treatment response are heritable (i.e. passed from one generation in a family to the next). By understanding these genetic factors, we can better tailor drug treatment to a specific patient and prevent many serious side effects. The Canadian Pharmacogenomics Network for Drug Safety (CPNDS) spans 27 academic health care centres across Canada and, additionally, has active collaborations with US, Mexican and Dutch researchers and health care institutions. The formation of this large network has enabled the collection of rich clinical data pertaining to drug treatment from thousands of patients. The current study aims to identify genetic markers associated with severe cardiotoxicity (i.e. heart damage), caused by a commonly used class of anticancer drugs known as anthracyclines. Using the experiences of hundreds of patients who have taken these drugs, vast amounts of genetic data will be analyzed in both pediatric and adult patients to determine which specific genetic markers are the most important contributors to this severe side effect. The results of this study will allow health care professionals to better guide the treatment of future cancer patients, therefore helping to make such treatment both safer and more effective.