Could doctors use DNA tests to screen for opiate addiction?

[Part of] what makes addiction so complex is that one might have a family history or genetic profile…and not develop addiction. Twin studies show genetics account for roughly half the risk, leaving the rest to environment.

But what if there is a way for doctors to better screen for addiction before it becomes a problem? Brian Meshkin, CEO of Proove Bioscience, a company…that specializes in personalized medicine, thinks he’s found something of a solution. He’s developed a product called Proove Opioid Risk, a test doctors give to patients that combines their genetic profile with clinical observation that Proove says can predict a patient’s risk of becoming addicted to opioids with 93 percent accuracy. 

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Dr. Richard Friedman, a…professor of clinical psychiatry at Weill Cornell Medical School, says claims made by Proove “cannot be taken seriously by scientists, clinicians, and, most importantly, the public,” until they are peer-reviewed. 

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People in the medical community are justifiably skeptical of tech companies that parachute in on their turf…Proove has to first prove itself to doctors…before they accept their claims as legitimate.

The GLP aggregated and excerpted this blog/article to reflect the diversity of news, opinion, and analysis. Read full, original post: Can a DNA Test Really Predict Opiate Addiction?