Case Studies in Personalized Medicine

Vanderbilt University

About this Course

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Learn how advances in biomedicine hold the potential to revolutionize drug development, drug treatments, and disease prevention: where are we now, and what does the future hold? This course will present short primers in genetics and mechanisms underlying variability in drug responses. A series of case studies will be used to illustrate principles of how genetics are being brought to bear on refining diagnoses and on personalizing treatment in rare and common diseases. The ethical and operational issues around how to implement large scale genomic sequencing in clinical practice will be addressed. 
After completing this course, learners will understand
1. The ways in which genetic variants can contribute to human disease susceptibility
2. How to choose among drug therapies based on genetic factors  
3. That the functional consequences of the vast majority of genetic variants discovered by modern sequencing are unknown.

This course is targeted primarily at physicians 5+ years out of training. Other healthcare providers, medical/health sciences students, and members of the public may also be interested. 

Course launches January 15, 2016.

* The information presented in “Case Studies in Personalized Medicine” is offered for educational and informational purposes only, and should not be construed as personal medical advice. If you have questions or concerns about a medical matter, please consult your doctor or other professional healthcare provider.

Learner Career Outcomes

25%

started a new career after completing these courses

25%

got a tangible career benefit from this course

25%

got a pay increase or promotion

Shareable Certificate

Earn a Certificate upon completion

100% online

Start instantly and learn at your own schedule.

Flexible deadlines

Reset deadlines in accordance to your schedule.

Approx. 17 hours to complete

English

Subtitles: English

Learner Career Outcomes

25%

started a new career after completing these courses

25%

got a tangible career benefit from this course

25%

got a pay increase or promotion

Shareable Certificate

Earn a Certificate upon completion

100% online

Start instantly and learn at your own schedule.

Flexible deadlines

Reset deadlines in accordance to your schedule.

Approx. 17 hours to complete

English

Subtitles: English

Instructor

Instructor rating

4.92/5 (27 Ratings)

Dan Roden, M.D.

Professor of Medicine and Pharmacology

Assistant Vice Chancellor for Personalized Medicine

21,814 Learners

1 Course

Offered by

Vanderbilt University

Vanderbilt University, located in Nashville, Tenn., is a private research university and medical center offering a full-range of undergraduate, graduate and professional degrees.

Syllabus - What you will learn from this course

Content Rating98%(2,087 ratings)

Week

Week 1

3 hours to complete

UNIT 1: INTRODUCTION TO PERSONALIZED MEDICINE

The first module of this course will focus on introducing the concept of personalized medicine. We will very briefly review fundamentals of genetics as these apply to personalized medicine (DNA structure; RNA; protein structures; function of DNA; coding; DNA variations; types of genetic variants), as well as review statistical concepts and skills important to clinical data analysis (odds ratios, relative risk, P values, multiple testing, sensitivity, specificity, ROCs). In Module 2 we will explore drug actions and reactions as we look closely at the general mechanisms underlying variability in drug responses, drug metabolism and transport, and genetic variability in drug-handling molecules.

3 hours to complete

11 videos (Total 120 min), 1 reading, 1 quiz

11 videos

A welcome message from Dr. Roden3m

Introduction to Personalized Medicine11m

Genetics Definitions, Part I14m

Genetics Definitions, Part II & Types of Genetic Variants15m

Data Analysis, Part I: What is a Good Study?12m

Data Analysis, Part II: What is a Good Test?7m

Introduction to Drug Therapy and General Mechanisms Underlying Variability in Drug Responses13m

Variability in Drug Therapy15m

Drug Metabolism & Transport13m

Genetic Variability in Drug-Handling Molecules10m

**Inside VUMC: The Promise of Personalized Medicine1m

1 reading

About this course10m

1 practice exercise

Introduction to Personalized Medicine12m

Week

Week 2

2 hours to complete

UNIT 2: STUDYING GENETIC VARIATION

Module 3 focuses on how we study genetic variation. We'll start by looking at families and populations. Topics that will be introduced include family history and inheritance patterns, ancestry, and linkage. Then in Module 4 we shift our focus to studying the contemporary techniques and technologies used to study genetic variation, including genome-wide association and sequencing.

2 hours to complete

7 videos (Total 104 min)

7 videos

Family History and Inheritance Patterns18m

Ancestry: Genetic Variation Across Generations and Geography17m

Finding Disease-Associated Genes: Linkage10m

**Inside VUMC: From Phenotype to Genotype and Back: Studying Heart Disease in Families1m

Genome-Wide Association25m

Sequencing28m

**Inside VUMC: History of Sequencing Technologies1m

1 practice exercise

Studying Genetic Variation12m

Week

Week 3

3 hours to complete

UNIT 3: CASE STUDIES IN PERSONALIZED MEDICINE, PART 1

In Module 5 we will begin to discuss specific cases as these apply to personalized medicine. We will first look very closely at a case of familial hypercholesterolemia as we investigate how we use genomic medicine to move from a rare disease to a common medication, using genomics to find new drug targets, and a discussion of the side effects of statin therapy. In Module 6 we will look at a collection of "high risk pharmacogenetics"cases that illustrate adverse reactions due to drug metabolism and variable drug responses.

3 hours to complete

13 videos (Total 174 min)

13 videos

From rare to common disease: familial hypercholesterolemia11m

Using Genomics to Find New Drug Targets: Familial Hypercholesterolemia16m

Muscle Pains During Statin Therapy (Myopathy)13m

HLA-Mediated Immune Reactions (Skin Rash)9m

Long QT Syndromes, Part 115m

Long QT Syndromes, Part 218m

**Inside VUMC: Studying Cardiac Arrhythmias in Cells4m

A Second Heart Attack a Month After a First15m

Headache During Venlafaxine (Antidepressant)16m

Respiratory Arrest After Tonsillectomy10m

A Bleeding Complication 5 Days After Starting Warfarin21m

**Inside VUMC: Genotyping1m

Drug Metabolism and Variable Drug Responses – Four More Examples17m

1 practice exercise

Case Studies, Part I16m

Week

Week 4

2 hours to complete

UNIT 4: CASE STUDIES IN PERSONALIZED MEDICINE, PART 2

Module 7 continues our focus on case studies with a look at some cases that illustrate how personalized medicine informs treatment decisions related to specific diseases/conditions. These include cystic fibrosis, Marfan syndrome, heart failure, neuropsychiatric diseases, and diabetes. Three cases/lessons focus specifically on how genomic medicine informs testing for and treatment of cancer.

2 hours to complete

9 videos (Total 119 min)

9 videos

Cystic Fibrosis11m

Marfan Syndrome11m

A Case of Idiopathic Heart Failure16m

Personalizing Care in Neuropsychiatric Disease18m

Personalizing Care in Diabetes21m

Genomics to Subtype Cancer11m

A Family Member With Breast Cancer14m

A Family Member With Colon Cancer11m

**Inside VUMC: Organizing Infrastructure to Support Genetic Testing Decisions1m

1 practice exercise

Case Studies, Part II10m

Week

Week 5

2 hours to complete

UNIT 5: PERSONALIZED MEDICINE IN A SYSTEM OF CARE

Module 8 serves as a review and a continuing discussion of the cases presented in Modules 5-7, as we take a look at where we are now and what's on the horizon in personalized medicine. In Module 9 we will explore some critical considerations for implementing and operationalizing personalized medicine in a system of care, particularly in the area of informatics. We will discuss the role of the electronic medical record in a learning healthcare system, how electronic records support discovery, and using electronic records in the delivery of personalized medicine.

2 hours to complete

9 videos (Total 96 min)

9 videos

Where We Are Now19m

Where We Are Going24m

**Inside VUMC: Using iPSCs: Drug Discovery and Drug Efficacy3m

**Inside VUMC: Generating iPSCs1m

Electronic Medical Records & The Learning Healthcare System (Discovery)22m

Using Electronic Records to Personalize Care (Delivery)19m

**Inside VUMC: Using the EMR to Ascertain Patients for Genetic Studies2m

**Inside VUMC: Biobanking & DNA Extraction at BioVU1m

**Inside VUMC: Personalized Medicine is a Team Sport1m

1 practice exercise

Personalized Medicine in a System of Care10m

Week

Week 6

4 hours to complete

FINAL REFLECTION ACTIVITY

We are on the verge of having patients come to their physicians with their entire genome sequenced. How can we best use this information to improve care? This course looks closely at many specific genetic variants that have been identified as playing a role in a person’s susceptibility to disease and/or potential for adverse reaction to certain substances/drugs.

In the peer review activity below, please reflect on how your learning in this course has impacted your understanding of personalized medicine. There are two versions of this activity – one for healthcare professionals (doctors, nurses, pharmacists, medical students, etc.), and one for non-healthcare professionals (patients, consumers, general interest, etc.) Please be sure to choose the appropriate version of the activity.

4 hours to complete

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Case Studies in Personalized Medicine