polygenic risk score

No one can predict the future, particularly when it comes to the development of a disease.  The best we can do is evaluate the risk of acquiring one.  This is where genomic analysis may be able to help.  A polygenic risk score or polygenic score is a prediction based on the analysis of thousands of genetic variants within a person’s genome of their likelihood to develop a disease.  At the moment the two that are targeted are coronary disease and kidney disease.  The idea is that if we know we are at risk, then we can take steps to prevent it happening.  Sadly the test currently has only about ten per cent accuracy.  This is not good enough to make it a useful diagnostic tool. It is thought that the test may never be a reliable guide because environment and other non-genetic factors play such an important part.