Precision Medicine

Precision medicine is a way oncologists can offer and plan specific care for their patients, based on the particular genes, proteins, and other substances in a person’s body or the tumor tissue. This approach is known as personalized medicine.

With regard to cancer, precision medicine most often means looking at how changes in certain genes or proteins in a person’s cancer cells might affect their care, such as their treatment options. But it can have other uses as well.

In precision medicine, doctors use information from certain lab tests to put together a plan of care that usually includes specific recommendations. In some cases, it can help make a more accurate diagnosis and improve treatment. In other cases, it can help people make decisions about healthy habits, earlier screening tests, and other steps they can take that might help lower their risk for a particular cancer.