Clinical Support

Precision Medicine in Diabetes Initiative

The convergence of advances in medical science, human biology, data science, and technology has enabled a generation of new insights into the phenotypes underlying the diagnosis of diabetes. Deeper knowledge of these conditions has emerged from populations around the world, illuminating the differences in how diabetes presents, its variable prevalence, and how best practice in treatment varies across populations. In precision medicine, diagnostic tests help optimize a patient’s treatment strategies. Precision medicine proposes custom delivery of health care, with medical practices, testing, decisions, and treatments tailored to the individual patient level, basically, identifying the right treatment, for each patient, at the right time.

ADA has partnered with the European Association for the Study of Diabetes (EASD) on the Precision Medicine in Diabetes Initiative (PMDI) and our work in precision medicine’s innovative and pioneering technology is providing the foundation for great strides in advancements in diabetes care.

PMDI Objectives

The overall objective of the initiative is to improve diabetes care by realizing the promise of precision medicine for diabetes. To achieve this objective, several short-, medium- and long-term objectives have been identified.

  • Improve diabetes diagnostics.
  • Establish what evidence we have and what evidence is needed to develop best practice guidelines and best practice study design.
  • Provide education to implement best practice guidelines and best practice research.
  • Establish a research program to address open questions.
  • Accelerate the process for getting access to trials and for regulatory authorization.
  • Modify guidelines to incorporate new recommendations in precision medicine.

PMDI Outcomes

  • Support research and career development initiatives focused on precision diabetes medicine.
  • Enhance use of data (e.g. -omics assays, electronic health records, patient registries, digital imaging technologies and/or wearable devices) that address contexts of use relevant to diabetes.
  • Recommend guidelines for clinical implementation of precision diabetes medicine.
  • Educate health care providers.
  • Promote public engagement/awareness of precision diabetes medicine.

PMDI Activities

  • 2018
    • November - meeting with industry and academic stakeholders (London, UK)
  • 2019
    • June - ADA/EASD PMDI Symposium (ADA Scientific Sessions, San Francisco CA, USA)
    • October - Precision Diabetes Medicine 2019 conference, development of the outline for the 1st Consensus Report (Madrid, Spain)
  • 2020
    • June - ADA/EASD PMDI Symposium (ADA Scientific Sessions, virtual)
    • July - publication of 1st Consensus Report on Precision Medicine in Diabetes, jointly published in Diabetes Care (PMID: 32561617) and Diabetologia (PMID: 32556613)
    • September - ADA/EASD PMDI Symposium (EASD Annual Meeting, virtual)
  • 2021
  • 2022
    • Janaury - publication of ‘ADA/EASD Precision Medicine in Diabetes Initiative: An International Perspective and Future Vision for Precision Medicine in Diabetes’ in Diabetes Care (PMID: 35050364)
    • May - publication of the second ADA RFA on Precision Diabetes Medicine
    • June - ADA/EASD PMDI Symposium (ADA Scientific Sessions, New Orleans LA, USA)
    • September - ADA/EASD PMDI Symposium will be held at the hybrid EASD Annual Meeting, Stockholm, Sweden. Speakers will highlight the current status of precision diabetes medicine, identifying opportunities and barriers, and discuss approaches for implementation.
    • November - ADA/EASD PMDI Symposium will be held at the hybrid Future of Precision Medicine symposium (organized by the EFSD and Novo Nordisk Foundation). Speakers will highlight the current status of precision diabetes medicine, identifying opportunities and barriers, and discuss approaches for implementation.
  • 2023
    • January/February - publication of 2nd Consensus Report on Precision Medicine in Diabetes
    • April - proposed joint Precision Medicine meeting with ADA/NIH
    • June - Precision Medicine Symposium at ADA SS23

The Precision Medicine in Diabetes Initiative – Vision and Future Direction

PDM2021

The following, presented at the 2021 Precision Diabetes Medicine (PDM2021) Virtual Symposium in June by Paul W. Franks, PhD, Task Force Co-Chair, provides valuable insight into the important work of the PMDI to advance precision medicine in diabetes and the overall translational impact to patient care and outcomes.

ADA hosted Precision Medicine in Diabetes - 2021 Scientific Sessions Post Game Day Commentary.

Post Game Day

This event features a panel format, lively conversation with four experts in the diabetes scientific field, reflecting on highlights of precision medicine focused presentations from ADA’s 2021 Scientific Sessions, examining different points, identifying potential areas not covered or important gaps in knowledge and, sharing additional information pertinent to precision medicine that may not have been covered.

Moderator

  • Paul Franks, PhD, MPhil, Novo Nordisk Foundation and co-chair, ADA’s PMDI

Panelists

  • Mark Anderson, MD, PhD, University of California, San Francisco
  • Elizabeth Selvin, PhD, MPH, Johns Hopkins
  • Steven Kahn, MB, ChB, University of Washington

Links to 2021 ADA Scientific Sessions Presentations

Pharmacogenetics and the Basis of Drug Responses in Diabetes, Ewan Pearson, PhD

Leveraging Genetics for Drug Target Identification - Jose Florez, MD, PhD

Debate - Precision Nutrition - Are We There Yet
- Yes, Precision Nutrition is Ready, Paul Franks, PhD
- No, Not Yet Ready for Prime Time, Kevin Hall, PhD

Putting it all together – Precision Medicine gets Precise>, Jonathan Himmelfarb, MD

PMDI Approach

Our approach is stepwise, incorporating and building the evidence base for precision medicine in diabetes that achieves quantifiable, implementable, probabilistic outcomes based on etiology and risk scores. The initiative will rely on expertise and collaboration from many stakeholders garnered through a hub-and-spoke model of working groups reporting to a steering committee with the overall initiative managed by an executive oversight committee.

pm_pipeline_figure
  • Louis H. Philipson, MD, PhD, University of Chicago, American Diabetes Association
  • John Nolan, MD, European Association for the Study of Diabetes
  • Paul W. Franks, PhD, Lund University, Task Force Co-Chair
  • Stephen S. Rich, PhD, University of Virginia, Task Force Co-Chair
  • Paul W. Franks, PhD, Lund University, Task Force Co-Chair
  • Stephen S. Rich, PhD, University of Virginia, Task Force Co-Chair
  • Wendy Chung, MD, PhD, Columbia University
  • Jessica Dunne, PhD, JDRF
  • Jose C. Florez, MD, PhD, Massachusetts General Hospital, Harvard Medical School
  • Andrew Hattersley, FRCP, University of Exeter
  • Christine G. Lee, MD, MS, National Institute of Diabetes and Digestive and Kidney Diseases
  • Mark McCarthy, FRCP, PhD, University of Oxford
  • John Nolan, MD, Trinity College Dublin, European Association for the Study of Diabetes
  • Jill Norris, MPH, PhD, University of Colorado, Denver
  • Ewan Pearson, FRCP, PhD, University of Dundee

Advisors:

  • Frank Hu, MD, PhD, Harvard Medical School
  • Gail Jarvik, MD, PhD, University of Washington