Precision or personalized medicine, a concept where diagnostics and treatment are tailor-made to individual patients, are believed to have major impacts in the field of cancer treatment. With the advancement and sophistication of modern technology, experts believed precision medicine can outsmart challenging medical issues.
Based on the concept of precision medicine in cancer treatment, scientists will assess every patient's tumor and find the mutations that have become vital for its survival. Then, they will choose a targeted drug to thwart the mutation, killing only the tumor and not the healthy cells, BBC News learns.
The Potential Impact Of Precision Medicine In Cancer Care
During the annual meeting of the American Society of Clinical Oncology (ASCO) over the weekend, scientists highlighted the potential impact of precision medicine in cancer treatment. In fact, Yale Cancer Center Medical Oncology chief and professor Roy Herbst said cancer experts aim to use precision or personalized medicine aims in developing a potent targeting treatment but at the same time reducing toxicity for lesser side effects, The Guardian notes.
Through precision medicine and the advancement in genetic tumor profiling, experts are hopeful for extended survival rates and reduction in toxic side-effects when it comes to cancer treatment. With that said, the latest cancer approach may pave the way for 7,000 women spared from the noxious effects of chemotherapy.
"It will be a significant step forward," UCL breast cancer consultant Dr. Robert Stein said. "In every area of cancer treatment, we have largely functioned on a one-size-fits-all basis because we didn't have tools to do any better."
Precision Medicine: The Latest Trend In Cancer Care
Due to its potential in cancer treatment, precision medicine has become the latest trend in treating cancer patients, outmaneuvering chemotherapy and radiation. According to Hindustan Times, precision medicine will enable oncology experts to preserve healthy cells.
By using a patient's individual biomarkers, experts can determine the best treatment that can improve success rates. Precision medicine is also believed to revolutionize oncology, especially when used in immunotherapy.
Precision Medicine: A Major Breakthrough Since Chemotherapy
Almost 30,000 doctors and scientists, who attended the world's largest cancer conference in Chicago over the weekend, recognized precision medicine's potential impacts on the future of cancer care. However, precision medicine is still not widely used in cancer treatment, except for some treatments centered on specific biological pathways to stop cancer growth like in breast cancer.
That's why scientists are developing the precision medicine method at a rapid pace. In addition, highly-targeted drugs can also bring the cancer under control, eliminating the dependence on "guesswork" or a "one size fits all" approach, Daily Mail reports.
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