Future of Personalized Medicine

Abstract

Based on the current progress in biotechnology and molecular medicine, considerable advances and breakthroughs are expected in the second decade of the twenty-first century. These will involve progress towards finding a cure for cancer and making it a chronic manageable disease. Many of the advances will be through application of new technologies such as nanobiotechnology and refinements of cell therapy, particularly the use of stem cells. Automation, robotics and informatics will be partially integrated into clinical medicine. Advances in regenerative medicine and tissue engineering will enable repair and regeneration of damage in CNS and cardiac disorders. The emphasis in treatment of neurological disorders will be on neuroprotection rather than control of symptoms. Management of infectious diseases will improve although unpredictable challenges may arise from emerging viral infections. In the setting of this progress, personalized medicine will be an important part of managing patients. Advances in molecular diagnostics and discovery of biomarkers will facilitate this development. Important advances relevant to personalized medicine will be: Pathomechanism of most of the currently known major diseases will be understood at the molecular level. Genomic, proteomics, metabolic data from various research and commercial sources will be integrated in clinical medicine. Most of the ethical and policy issues about genetic testing will be resolved and it will be a routine for some population groups. Pharmacogenetics will be applied to identify those at risk of adverse drug events from certain drugs. Improvements in targeted drug discovery and increase in pharmacogenomics-based clinical trials. Preventive medicine will be well recognized with acceptance of presymptomatic diagnosis and pre-emptive treatments.