the WHITE HOUSEPresident Barack Obama

Precision Medicine: Health Care Tailored to You

February 25, 2016 at 9:39 AM ET by Amanda Stone

Summary:

On the anniversary of the launch of the Precision Medicine Initiative, the President participates panel discussion with PMI stakeholders.

“Doctors have always recognized that every patient is unique, and doctors have always tried to tailor their treatments as best they can to individuals. You can match a blood transfusion to a blood type â€” that was an important discovery. What if matching a cancer cure to our genetic code was just as easy, just as standard? What if figuring out the right dose of medicine was as simple as taking our temperature?”

President Obama, January 30, 2015

Last year, President Obama announced the launch of the Precision Medicine Initiative (PMI) — an effortto accelerate a new era of medicine, focused on delivering more tailored health care.

Precision medicine is developing better approaches to preventive care and medical treatments

The Initiative works towards providing the right treatment at the right time to the right person, and taking into account patients’health history, genes, environments, and lifestyles. Precision medicine is already transforming the way diseases like cancer and mental health conditions are treated.

This morning, the President is participating in a panel discussion at the White House PMI Summit, marking the one year anniversary. The panel is moderated by Dr. James Hamblin of The Atlantic, and features remarks from inspiring patients, researchers and others working in the PMI field. Watch live now, and follow along here for updates throughout the day:

It's #PrecisionMedicine day here at the @WhiteHouse

Let's get this summit started! pic.twitter.com/jX8OwJ5rtR

— DJ Patil (@DJ44) February 25, 2016

Along with today’s Summit, more than 40 private-sector organizations and a varietyfederal agencies are making commitments to new actions and principlesthat are spearheading the Precision Medicine Initiative. You can learn more about them and provide feedback on the new draft data security principles and framework being launched today.

Read Actions View Data Principles

How Does Precision Medicine Relate to You?

PMI is about tailoring medicine to your unique biological needs. Here areseveral examples of how precision medicine already works in our health system today:

You wouldn't wear just any pair of glasses - precision medicine is health care tailored even more uniquely to you.

Your blood type is specific to your body. Matching the right type could save your life in case of surgery or transfusion.

Your genome sequence contains 3 billion DNA pairs that add up to one unique you. Scientists can use the human genome to develop new ways to treat, cure, or prevent thousands of diseases.