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Many patients who have been diagnosed with cancer will receive a personalized treatment plan tailored to their unique genetic makeup. While the frequency and types of tests vary between cancer types, many patients may qualify for multiple tests to help determine the best possible treatment options. Some benefits of personalized treatment include reduced treatment costs and improved treatment outcomes. Let’s look at four of them. There are also fewer side effects and less variability.
Cost of multigene panel tests
Hereditary cancer panels include multiple genes that may have a role in the risk of developing cancer. In addition to identifying specific genes that may increase the likelihood of developing cancer, hereditary cancer panels are a time and cost-effective alternative to gene-specific risk assessments. They are also helpful for patients with rare or atypical familial presentations and limited family structure. Family history may not be sufficient to identify a patient’s most appropriate gene, making these tests a more efficient alternative.
Personalized cancer treatment plans may include multigene panels for high-penetrance susceptibility genes such as MUTYH, BRCA1, BRCA2, RAD51C, RAD51D, ataxia-telangiectasia mutated, and POLD1. These tests can also identify lower-penetrance genes, such as TP53. Some patients may require several tests to determine a personalized treatment plan, making multigene panel testing essential.
Variability of the personalized cancer treatment plan
In the past, cancer treatments were generally “one size fits all.” Patients were treated with chemotherapy, radiation, or surgical tumor removal. But these methods sometimes cause a rash, toxicity, or other side effects in healthy cells. Precision and personalized medicine are characterized by customized treatments that target cancer cells to give them the best chance at recovery. This type of treatment plan is a promising development for cancer treatment.
Traditional cancer therapies are ineffective in all patients because their tumors have different genetic or protein expression profiles. Because of this, the conventional treatment model is overly simplified and often results in ineffective treatments or unnecessary side effects. On the other hand, PPM fosters the development of specialized treatments for specific subtypes of cancer and measures patient-specific genetic and omic data. This information helps physicians develop the best possible treatment for each patient.
Improved treatment outcomes
Personalized medicine is a promising approach to battling cancer. Patients can be identified by their genetic makeup, and doctors can use that information to better select a treatment plan for each patient. In recent years, liquid biopsy has become a popular method for diagnosing breast cancer. This new technology could reduce the strain on the healthcare system. However, personalized care also relies on real-world data about each patient. Clinic visits only offer a snapshot of a patient’s condition. Wearable sensors or apps can provide this information in real-time.
The characterization of the tumor, host, and microenvironment drives the development of a tailored treatment. The key to personalized cancer medicine is the collaboration of patients and medical professionals. Like medical oncology associates of San Diego offers sophisticated cancer diagnostics, as well as cancer treatment technologies that help provide the best possible outcome while minimizing side effects and recovery time. Personalized cancer therapy has produced more than a dozen clinical trials to date. Personalized treatment plans are expected to lead to better treatment outcomes.
Reduced costs
Over the past decade, attention has focused on potential solutions for reducing cancer care costs. Most strategies target health systems and provider behavior, including value-based payment models, drug price reductions, and stimulating competition in the generic and biosimilar markets. Fewer efforts have focused on patient-level actions that engage patients and reflect individual circumstances. This review of recent research on patient-level interventions aims to address these challenges. This review presents evidence for strategies that improve patient engagement and improve the economic experience of cancer patients, including financial navigation, treatment planning, alternative care pathways, and value-based insurance designs.
In addition to enhancing patient experience, personalized follow-up care pathways can improve patient outcomes while reducing health care costs. These models have shown great promise in the United Kingdom and Northern Ireland. They can be adopted in other countries with single-payer health systems. Countries with fragmented health care systems or a lack of health care infrastructure may need to develop their personalized follow-up care pathways. In the meantime, researchers should continue testing and evaluating the effectiveness of personalized cancer treatment pathways.
