Advances in personalized cancer medicine and genetic testing

Medical specialists are highlighting the progress and challenges of personalized cancer treatments. During the XVIII Symposium on Biological Bases of Cancer and Therapeutic Innovation, experts noted that understanding the molecular characteristics of the more than 200 types of cancer allows for the identification of specific vulnerabilities, enabling more tailored treatments such as immunotherapy and targeted therapies.

While personalized medicine has improved survival rates and quality of life, experts cautioned that chemotherapy remains a significant component of treatment and that specific solutions are not yet available for all patients. The potential of liquid biopsies to monitor disease evolution and resistance was also discussed, though they are not currently a replacement for conventional biopsies.

In Latin America, genomic specialists are emphasizing anticipatory medicine to transform clinical prevention. Genetic testing can identify biological predispositions by analyzing DNA, potentially allowing medical monitoring to begin up to ten years earlier than standard health guidelines suggest. This early detection is critical, as cure rates for many cancers, including breast cancer, are near 100% when identified in initial stages.