Let’s talk about the next steps.
Your healthcare provider will receive — or has received — your GeneSight results. Request a copy of your report.
Now it’s time to schedule an appointment with your healthcare provider. See what commonly asked questions you can ask your healthcare provider about your results.
To further understand your results, continue to the explanation of the GeneSight report below.
Did you know?
You should not make any changes to your current medications or dosing without consulting your healthcare provider.
Please contact your healthcare provider to set up an appointment to review your GeneSight results.
If mental health medications have failed you in the past — either because they didn’t relieve your symptoms, or they’ve caused concerning side effects — the answer may be in your genes. Your body may metabolize or respond to medications differently based on your DNA. The GeneSight test provides information about which medications may require dose adjustments, may be less likely to work, or may have an increased risk of side effects based on your genetics.
Why your genetic profile matters
How your body breaks down or responds to medications can vary from medication to medication.
Too little medication
If a medication is broken down at a faster rate than normal, you may not have enough medication in your body which may be ineffective for treatment
Too much medication
If a medication is broken down at a slower rate than normal, you may have too much medication in your body which may lead to side effects.
In addition to genetics being able to affect how a medication is broken down, genetic variation may also affect how a medication works on your body. This type of variation may affect how likely a medication is to work or the likelihood of experiencing side effects.
The GeneSight test does not provide information about:
Additionally, taking medications at the time of testing will not affect your GeneSight results.
How categorization works
Report categories
These medications are not associated with any known genetic issues that would be expected to change medication outcomes.
However, these medications are not guaranteed to work and may not always be the best options, as there are many other factors that influence medication response and susceptibility to side effects, including drug-drug interactions, diet, environmental factors, age, etc.
These medications may require dose adjustments to have the desired effect, may be less likely to work, or may cause side effects.
Medications in the yellow or red categories on the report do not necessarily need to be avoided, and they can still be a viable treatment option for you. The clinical considerations, which are denoted by numbers next to the medications (we will review these next), can provide your healthcare provider with information to help inform your treatment plan.
These medications are likely to require dose adjustments in order to have the desired effect, may be less likely to work, or may cause side effects.
Genetics are expected to have an even greater impact on these medications than medications in the moderate gene-drug interaction category. These medications may still be used, but healthcare providers will often pay close attention to the clinical considerations to help overcome potential genetic issues you may have with these medications.
Medications in the yellow or red categories doesn’t mean it won’t work or can never be used. Healthcare providers may determine that based on your diagnosis and other factors, a medication in the yellow or red category may be an option for you.
The gray category is limited to the mood stabilizers, stimulants, and non-stimulants sections. While the medications in the category may not have clinically proven genetic markers that allow them to be categorized, a gray category medication still may be an effective choice for your healthcare provider to prescribe based on other clinical factors.
Clinical considerations
Clinical considerations explain the rationale for a medication’s classification and can be used to help inform treatment decisions. These are noted with a small number to the right of the medication.
Some common misconceptions are that the reports will tell clinicians the “right” medication or that the medication at the top of the list must be the best for you, but both are inaccurate.
Medications with the fewest number of clinical considerations are placed at the top of the list in alphabetical order, and the medications with more clinical considerations are placed further down the list.
Many individuals have a genetic variation that causes certain medications to be metabolized more quickly if you are a smoker. For these patients, the categorization and clinical considerations provided for certain medications may change. Smoking is defined as the daily inhalation of burning plant material such as cigarettes and marijuana (it excludes vaping and e-cigarettes). It is important to let your healthcare provider know if you are a smoker so they can refer to the ‘Smoker’ pages of the GeneSight report.
For patients who are non-smokers, the pages labeled “Non-Smokers” should be referred to.
Supplemental information
The rest of the report includes information that clinicians can use to better understand medication categorization and why clinical considerations are provided for certain medications.
Clinicians may choose to dive deeper into the genotypes and phenotypes section of the report, which provides a list of all the genes tested, along with the individual’s specific genetic result (genotype) and the characteristic associated with that genetic result (phenotype).
Pharmacodynamic genes provide information about how a medication works on the body. Variation in these genes may affect likelihood of response or risk of side effects with certain medications. Pharmacokinetic genes provide information about how the body works on the medication. Variation in these genes may affect the metabolism of a medication.
The gene-drug interaction chart provides supplementary information about which pharmacokinetic genes are involved in the breakdown of each medication. Any dot (either shaded, unshaded, or half-shaded) signifies that the enzyme is involved in the metabolism of the associated medication.
Do not make changes to your treatment regimen without consulting with your clinician.
Here are some questions you can ask during your visit:
“Are there any medications I should avoid based on my genetic results?”
“What do my test results mean for my current treatment plan?”
“How will this information be used moving forward in my treatment plan? Are there specific parts that would be helpful for me to understand for my treatment plan?”
“Are medications listed as use as directed guaranteed to work?”
“Are their potential gene-drug interactions or side effects I should be aware of given my results?”
You deserve mental wellness. We hope the GeneSight report helps your healthcare provider find a treatment plan to get you back to feeling like yourself again.
If you have questions about the report, our Genetic Counselor team is available to talk with you about your results, call us at 866-757-9204.The Genetic Counselor team is available from 7:30am-6pm EST, Monday-Friday.
If you don’t have a copy of your report, ask your healthcare provider for a copy or complete the request form by clicking the button below: