GeneSight test-guided treatment leads to faster remission and response in patients with depression

Myriad Genetics, Inc., a leader in molecular diagnostic testing and precision medicine, today announced a post-hoc analysis of the Precision Medicine in Mental Health Care (PRIME) study showed that treatment informed by the GeneSight^® test led to faster initial remission and response in patients with Major Depressive Disorder (MDD). Further, the post-hoc analysis showed that this benefit persisted over six months with no evidence of changing over time.

Every single day matters to someone suffering from depression; patients want to get back to feeling like themselves as quickly as possible. As a result, a long trial-and-error period with medication can be frustrating for both clinicians and patients. This post-hoc analysis shows that treatment informed by the GeneSight test led to faster remission and response in patients with MDD – and this benefit lasted for at least six months."

Dale Muzzey, chief scientific officer, Myriad Genetics

The PRIME Care study, the largest pharmacogenomic randomized controlled trial in mental health, enrolled 1,944 U.S. Veterans with depression to test whether GeneSight results improved treatment outcomes. Published in the Journal of the American Medical Association (JAMA) in 2022, it found patients whose clinicians had GeneSight results were significantly more likely to achieve remission over 24 weeks.

The post-hoc analysis of the study results explored whether having access to the GeneSight test results increased the rate of remission and response over time and if the effect was persistent.

Published in the Oct. 30, 2025 edition of Frontiers in Pharmacology, the new post-hoc analysis showed that patients who took the GeneSight test were at any given time during the 24-week study period relative to patients receiving usual care:

• 27% more likely to achieve remission from depression

• 21% more likely to experience response (at least a 50% reduction in depressive symptoms)

Myriad Genetics plans to submit these data to payers as part of its ongoing efforts to increase patient access to the GeneSight test and to help patients achieve remission from depression.

About the PRIME Care Study & the post-hoc analysis

The largest pharmacogenomic (PGx) randomized controlled trial (RCT) ever conducted in mental health, the PRIME Care Study included 1,944 veteran patients with MDD who were randomized to receive GeneSight results immediately (pharmacogenomic-guided group) or after 24 weeks (usual care group). The U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) independently conducted and funded the study. Myriad Genetics provided the GeneSight tests for the study.

PRIME Care met both of its prespecified primary outcomes: patients in the PGx-guided arm were less likely to be prescribed an antidepressant medication with a significant gene-drug interaction and were 28% more likely to achieve remission across the 24-week duration of the trial compared to patients in the usual care arm.

The prespecified post-hoc analysis of the PRIME Care study included veteran patients who had sufficient data to be included in the post-hoc analysis, or 1,764 of the 1,944 veterans. The primary endpoints of this post-hoc analysis were the time of the first instance of remission (defined as PHQ- 9 ≤5) and response (defined as ≥50% reduction from baseline PHQ-9 score).

About the GeneSight^® test

The GeneSight Psychotropic test from Myriad Genetics is the category-leading pharmacogenomic test for more than 60 medications commonly prescribed for depression, anxiety, ADHD, and other psychiatric conditions. The GeneSight test can help inform clinicians about how a patient's genes may impact how they metabolize and/or respond to certain psychiatric medications. It is designed to provide information that may help reduce the trial-and-error process that often takes place when patients are prescribed certain mental health medications.