Genomics is ending diagnostic odysseys for patients with rare diseases.
Introduction
Did you know that there are truly rare people born all the time? Around 350 million people on earth are living with rare disorders - this is a disorder or condition with fewer than 200,000 people diagnosed. About 80 percent of these rare disorders are genetic in origin, and 95 percent of them do not have even one treatment approved by the FDA.
The ability to read the human genome quickly and cheaply has led to substantial advances in discovering the causes of rare disorders. Many families have gone through years of "diagnostic odysseys," going from one specialist to another trying to find the root cause for their family member's rare disorder. It is difficult to overstate the relief that genomic testing has brought to many of these patients and families, not just for themselves but eventually for other affected families who are finally able to connect and share their challenges. In the last 10 years, a large number of patient groups have formed after the genomic cause has been identified for a specific rare disorder. These groups allow family members and patients to communicate with each other through social media or conferences. Perhaps more importantly, many of these patient groups are accelerating research on rare diseases by recruiting patients with the same condition to participate in scientific studies. When families band together, their efforts sometimes shrink the path for establishing the genetic basis for a rare condition from decades (and unfortunately many patient lifetimes) to a year or two.