Published by Australian Council of Learned Academics (ACOLA), Wednesday 31 January
Published by Recent technological advances have enabled assembly of a wide range of data about an individual’s genetic and biochemical make-up, as formed by their genes, environment and lifestyle. While medicine has always had personal and predictive aspects, so-called precision medicine allows health and disease to be viewed at an increasingly fine-grained resolution, attuned to the complexities of both the biology of each individual, and the variation among the population. It’s exciting to think we’re on the brink of a genomic revolution in health care. The Australian Council of Learned Academies’ precision medicine project, co-authored by Grattan Institute’s Health Program Director Stephen Duckett, sketches the current trends in precision medicine technologies, and explores what broader implementation of precision medicine capabilities may mean for Australians.