As opposed to a “one size fits all” approach, Precision Medicine uses relevant biological, medical, behavioural and environmental information about a person to tailor their healthcare.
Having these different types of information help doctors to better predict disease risk, make more accurate diagnoses, and select therapy that is more individualised. Researchers can also harness this wealth of information to develop new and more effective therapeutics, treatment as well as disease management strategies.
How is it different from today’s medicine?
Doctors already use information about patients when deciding how to treat each patient. Currently, this information consists of characteristics such as age, sex, body weight, ethnic group, as well as simple measurements such as blood sugar, cholesterol, and blood pressure.
One of the big advantages of Precision Medicine is that it considers genetic factors, which explain up to 30 per cent of your health, such as your life span and which diseases may affect you. Now, technology has advanced to the point where genetic sequencing of people is much more affordable, allowing us to study and understand the genetic contribution to disease better than ever before.
Genes & Genetic Variants
Genes contain basic information needed to code for the proteins, cells and tissues that make up all living things. They play a role in determining our physical characteristics. More importantly, genes determine how individual organs and cells work in our body.
Our genes are coded as sequences of four letters, C, G, A and T. Differences in one or more of these letters are called genetic variants. Genetic variants are part of what make us unique. They affect how vulnerable we are to certain diseases and how we respond to foods, medications, exercise and toxins. Genetic variants can be passed down from parents to children.