3 Difference Between Traditional and Personalized
Medicine
Even now one can notice great differences and advantages of personalized medi-
cine. Traditional medicine relies on the trial-and-error method. The patient presents
with symptoms, and the doctor establishes the most probable diagnosis and treat-
ment. Drug dose is determined by the subject’s weight. If the drug does not work,
the new dosage or drug is prescribed. Alternatively, the doctor establishes new
diagnosis and new treatment. The cycle is repeated until the right or more accurate
diagnosis has been reached and the new treatment plan has been set. On the other
hand, personalized medicine means to diagnose more precisely onset of the exact
disease. This is followed by selection of the most adequate treatment and dosage by
using personalized medicine tools taking into consideration the patient’s specific
physiology, tumor, viral or bacterial physiology (if possible), and patient’s ability to
metabolize a specific drug. What stands in the way of the transition from traditional
to personalized medicine? According to Aspinall and Hamermesh, there are several
key obstacles, among which the pharmaceutical industry stands out, i.e., historical
success of blockbuster drugs (one drug fits all). The next obstacles include regula-
tory environment, which is not fit for personalized approach, and irrational econ-
omy, which is reflected by exaggerate costs of medical examinations and drugs
instead of supporting diagnosing in the function of prevention. One of the hurdles is
also linked with medial doctors’ habits heavily relying on trial-and-error
medicine.^11
Pharmaceutical industry nowadays is most likely faced with a breakdown of
blockbuster drug system. Although the financial support for drug R&D has
increased (almost three times since 1990), the number of new molecular entities
approved by FDA (1993–1997) has dropped from 33 to 26 a year. This resulted in
the inability of the pharmaceutical industry to design a sufficient number of new
drugs. There is the impression that in spite of this, the pharmaceutical industry does
not express too much interest in developing targeted therapy and does not approve
drugs associated with prevention and diagnostics.
There are certain disciplinary presumptions for personalized medicine, above all
radical changes in the mode of an individual approach to the patient. The challenge
of personalized medicine is, besides interdisciplinary, how to reach interdisciplin-
ary consensus that allows specific challenges—regional, organizational, and disci-
plinary. Furthermore, it is of utmost importance to integrate data at multiple levels:
statistical biological data with dynamic physiological data, data on environment,
lifestyle, and geographical location of the patient.
Key factors that may influence the development and implementation of person-
alized medicine include education, participation of the third, multidisciplinarity
(and beyond), infrastructure, revised disease classification, revised test models,
(^11) Pavelic ́et al. ( 2015 ) and Aspinall and Hamermesh ( 2007 ).
Personalized Medicine: The Path to New Medicine 5