JMIR Publications announced on Apr. 6 the release of a new article in its News and Perspectives section that explores recent developments in precision oncology. The article, titled "Further Promise and Potential for Precision Medicine in Oncology," discusses how individualized, multi-drug regimens could improve outcomes for patients with aggressive and advanced cancers.
The report, authored by JMIR Correspondent Shalini Kathuria Narang, highlights findings from the Investigation of Profile-Related Evidence Determining Individualized Cancer Therapy (I-PREDICT) trial. The study found that matching drug therapies to a patient's specific tumor mutations led to better treatment responses as well as longer progression-free and overall survival rates.
Traditional approaches to precision medicine typically focus on targeting a single genetic mutation with one drug. However, the I-PREDICT trial conducted by researchers at UC San Diego School of Medicine indicates that advanced tumors often involve greater complexity.
The analysis points to several key insights about this approach. The article notes that while further randomized validation is needed, the use of personalized combination therapies—referred to as "precision cocktails"—is likely to become more common as molecular testing becomes faster and more targeted drugs become available.
"In 10 years, I'm hoping personalized medicine for cancer will be one of the standard approaches," said Dr. Shumei Kato, medical oncologist at UC San Diego Health. "Compared to chemo, the more precise targeted therapy is a lot easier on a patient's body."
