BME 695N Lecture 1: Need for New Perspectives on Medicine

Outline:The Progression of MedicineConventional "modern" medicine "Personalized" or "molecular" medicineNanomedicine "single-cell" medicineHow Conventional Medicine Works for Diagnosis of DiseaseIdentification of the "diseased state"Simple measurements of body structure and functionFollow-up clinical testsInternal examinations by non-invasive in-vivo imagingMolecular tests for specific gene propertiesComparison of individual results with "normal ranges"How Conventional Medicine Works for Treatment of DiseaseStabilization of patient – "heal thyself"Surgical repair of injuriesTreatment with drugs locallyTreatment with drugs systemicallyTreatment with targeted therapiesFactors Limiting the Progress of Medicine EconomicsPoliticsSome Specific Problems with Conventional Medicine Consequences of waiting for patient symptomsTrained people and modern drugs are expensiveDiagnostic technologies, if available, are still relatively primitive and/or expensiveCrude targeting of drugsPersonalized MedicineBased on genetic characteristics of the individual patientSpecific gene rearrangments or mutationsSpecific SNPs (Single Nucleotide Polymorphisms)NanomedicineMedicine performed at single cell levelPossibility of "regenerative medicine"Blurring of distinction between prevention and treatment