Precision Medicine: An Emerging Paradigm for Improved Diagnosis and Safe Therapy in Pediatric Oncology

Cureus. 2021 Jul 19;13(7):e16489. doi: 10.7759/cureus.16489. eCollection 2021 Jul.

Abstract

Cancer is a lethal disease that kills a great number of people each year. Standard treatments such as chemotherapy or radiation are only effective in a small percentage of individuals due to illness variability. Tumors can be caused by a variety of genetic factors and express a variety of proteins depending on the individual. Because of developments in high-throughput technology, there has been a flood of large-scale biological data produced in recent decades. As a result, the focus of medical research has evolved. It was a once-in-a-lifetime chance for translational research to explore molecular alterations across the entire genome. In this setting, precision medicine was developed, and the possibility of better diagnostic and treatment tools became a reality. This is especially true in the case of cancer, which is becoming more prevalent around the world. The goal of this study is to look at precision medicine technology and its applications to cancer, with a focus on children. The inherent diversity of cancer lends itself to the rapidly expanding field of precision and personalized medicine.

Keywords: clonal evolution; genomic diagnosis; network analysis; pediatric oncology; precision cancer medicine; research and innovation.

Publication types

  • Review