By Cin Lee
Image from iStock: https://www.istockphoto.com/photo/genetic-engineering-concept-dna-gene-therapy-medical-technology-gm1249306198-364064152
The major objective of this area is to serve and treat patients better, and personalized medicine, also known as genomic medicine, enables this. Precision medicine primarily deals with tailoring medical treatments by looking at an individual’s genetic profile, environment, lifestyle, and overall health. This customized approach has the ability to completely change healthcare through a variety of methods including early diagnosis, disease prevention, plan selection, and patient monitoring.
Precision medicine is a key component that uses genetic testing and other genetic analytic processes to find the specific molecular signals that cause disease. New advances in genomic sequencing panels now enable quick and cost-effective study of the entire genome and individual genes. Healthcare providers can use genomic data to learn about patients’ susceptibility to certain diseases or their sensitivity to specific drugs, in addition to monitoring other elements of their health and risks.
Precision medicine will be applied to a wide range of medical care settings and diseases. Although oncology has been at the forefront of precision medicine for cancer treatment decisions, this strong technology has an impact on many other professions. Through genetic study of mutations driving a cancer in a patient, oncologists can identify suitable medicines targeted to address the mutations causing the disease, ensuring that the malignancy’s effect is managed and the prognosis improved. On the other hand, precision medicine is being used in the field of cardiology to identify people who are at high cardiovascular risk owing to genetics and other variables, so that they can be treated early and preventive measures can be implemented.
Furthermore, precision medicine has the potential to fundamentally change the way infectious diseases are treated. Genomics of infectious pathogens such as viruses and bacteria are being sequenced, which aids in understanding the intricate molecular mechanisms of pathogenesis. As a result, the future of healthcare depends on the development of targeted therapies and vaccines that allow us to combat infectious pathogens more effectively. This strategy has proven to be particularly beneficial in the management of illnesses such as HIV and hepatitis C, where targeted medications have caused a revolution in this business and patients are able to live the same quality of life they did previously.
Of course, in addition to disease treatment, precision medicine has far-reaching implications for disease prevention and risk assessment. Genetic testing can identify carriers of risk genes, which is beneficial for those who are at a higher risk for certain diseases because it allows for early intervention and targeted preventive measures. Individuals with a family history of cancer, for example, will most likely be subjected to more frequent examinations in the future, as well as changes in their lives, to lower their risk factors. Under such circumstances, pharmacogenomics testing could help doctors predict an individual’s reaction to specific medications, allowing them to prescribe treatment.
At the same time, if we find out virtually everything about a person’s health and genomics, it may lead to some scenarios and ethical problems. Here we examine the problems such as the patient’s privacy and consent, the interpretation of genetic data, questions about the equal access to the genetic testing and the provision of the treatments, and genetic discrimination and the other related concerns. Not only that, but proper assimilation of genomic knowledge into clinical practice needs continuous teacher/provider education and training since the healthcare providers need to be aware of how to employ genomic data in practice as well.
In conclusion, the evolution of precision medicine can be seen as a brand-new perspective for managing diseases which has the opportunity to fundamentally change the way we prevent and diagnose diseases and even the way we treat patients as well. Through the surface of genomic information, precision medicine allows health care providers to offer more customized and specifically directed strategies which are fit to meet the specific needs of each patient. The picture of precision medicine will unceasingly emerge the more research is done regarding this point of view, which will rightfully place it in center stage alongside other healthcare issues of the world.
MCR Committee: Genetics
References:
What is precision medicine?: MedlinePlus Genetics. (n.d.). https://medlineplus.gov/genetics/understanding/precisionmedicine/definition/
Precision Medicine. (2018, September 27). U.S. Food And Drug Administration. https://www.fda.gov/medical-devices/in-vitro-diagnostics/precision-medicine
The Promise of Precision Medicine. (2023, November 16). National Institutes of Health (NIH). https://www.nih.gov/about-nih/what-we-do/nih-turning-discovery-into-health/promise-precision-medicine
Denk, A. (2021, November 3). Precision Medicine Group. Precision Medicine Group. https://www.precisionmedicinegrp.com/