Introduction: Precision medicine is defined as personalized interventions fitted to patients' or tumors' characteristics. Patients diagnosed with different neoplasms have benefited from a personalized therapeutic approach in terms of response and survival. However, several challenges must be addressed for precision oncology to become a global reality. Access to genomic testing that allows biomarker identification is a main issue.
Areas covered: A nonsystematic literature review about inequities in access to molecular genetic testing, focusing on lung cancer as the prominent example, was performed by a group of expert clinical oncologists.
Expert opinion: Access to molecular tests and their matched treatments differ between regions of the world and even among diverse populations in the same country. Socioeconomic characteristics are often strongly correlated with this disparity. Furthermore, although the cost is a determinant factor for inequality, other issues have been recognized. Advances in the education of healthcare professionals, patient advocacy initiatives, building local laboratory workstreams, and promoting favorable regulatory environment are vital factors in promoting equal access.
Keywords: Precision medicine; access; inequities; lung cancer; oncology; target therapy.