Can Precision Medicine Work for Everyone? Tackling the Challenge of Healthcare Disparities

Precision medicine was supposed to deliver more targeted, personalized treatment to all patients — but as it rolls out, it is both highlighting and exacerbating disparities within the healthcare system. Studies have shown, for instance, that African-American cancer patients tend to have poorer outcomes than Caucasian patients, even when their tumors are less aggressive. And the COVID-19 pandemic illustrated just how disproportionately certain groups can be affected. A moment of reckoning has arrived, but are we ready to address inequities in healthcare? Are we even capable of doing so? In this panel discussion, experts will consider a range of different disparities in healthcare, from the above-mentioned example of cancer patients to the need for greater diversity in clinical trials and more. They will explore potential remedies for these problems and present promising advances from teams that are actively tackling this thorny issue.