Safe drugs: Myth or reality?

Abstract

Today, requirements on the safety and effectiveness of medications are growing worldwide, leading to increased costs of their development. However, this paper shows that xenobiotic preparations cannot but cause side effects; the growing number of preparations in the market, polypharmacy abuse, and self-treatment increase the number of adverse consequences, including fatal ones. Health hazards also lurk in interactions between drugs and dietary supplements because of the latter’s lower certification level, as well as in their treatment effects associated with the patient’s diet and lifestyle specifics. In order to avoid negative consequences of drug intake, it is necessary to develop a personalized approach to xenobiotic pharmacotherapy that would use the results of pharmacogenomics and pharmacometabolomics, as well as therapeutic drug monitoring with strict account for possible drug–drug interactions.