Launching PDGENEration to Advance Genetic Testing in Parkinson Disease: James Beck, PhD

“The world of precision medicine is coming to Parkinson disease (PD), and the field is not ready. Meaning people with PD don't have ready access to genetic testing. It's not part of their standard of care. Clinicians don't know a person's genetic status. So, who's going to be able to participate in these trials? Who's going to be able to benefit from these therapies when no one knows whether they have a genetic form of PD or not?”

As precision medicine and gene therapies start to be explored and tested in more fields, a greater knowledge base of patient genetics is needed. Genetic testing needs to become part of the standard of care to enable future genetic medicine treatment or participation in clinical trials research. One such field is Parkinson disease (PD), many patients with which have not been genetically tested and whose genetic status remains unknown.

In response to this issue, the Parkinson’s Foundation has launched PDGENEration (NCT04057794), their initiative to offer genetic counseling and testing to people with PD. Participation in the study is available at-home or in-person in sites across the US to people with PD.

CGTLive spoke with James Beck, PhD, chief scientific officer and senior vice president, Parkinson’s Foundation, to learn more about the launch of PDGENEration and the need for genetic testing in people with PD. Neurologists seeking more information about PD GENEration can visit PDGENEration.com or email [email protected]for questions about enrollment.