Personalized Medicine Promises and Pitfalls

Personalized Medicine: Promises and Pitfalls broadly explores the tailoring of medical treatment to a patient’s characteristics, needs, and preferences during all stages of care, including prevention, diagnosis, treatment, and follow-up. The book’s goal is to explain the science behind personalized medicine, what impact it may have on specific diseases, and some of the repercussions of a personalized medical approach on our medical institutions. Novel personalized therapeutic treatments and their scientific basis are discussed by covering topics as diverse as genomics, proteomics, epigenetics, integrative medicine, stem cells, and the factors that influence personal health. A personalized medical system also requires patient involvement in developing a healthy lifestyle, and so this book touches on topics such as the individual’s family history, present and past lifestyle, nutrition, exercise levels, and stress factors. By explaining these broad topics in personalized medicine and the science behind them, we discover how personalized medicine can have a positive impact on an individual’s health.

Genomics DNA Chromosomes Genes Transcription and Translation The Birth of Genetics with Mendel Mitosis, Meiosis, and Recombination Single-Nucleotide Polymorphism Cystic Fibrosis, Cancer and Genomics Post-Translational Modifications Microarrays and CRISPR/Cas9 Chimera ReferencesProteomics Amino Acids and Proteins Post-Translational Modifications Biomarkers Proteomics, Biomarkers, and Prostate Cancer Metabolomics Proteomics, Biomarkers, and Breast Cancer Proteomics and Atherosclerosis References Epigenetics Diabetes and Epigenetics Diabetes and DNA Methylation Histones and Epigenetics Genomics, Epigenetics, and Environment in Mental Illnesses miRNAs, siRNAs, and piRNAs miRNAs and Cancer miRNAs and Hepatitis C ReferencesIntegrative Medicine: Nutrition and Exercise Healthy Diet BMI Vitamins Minerals in our Diet Metabolic Syndrome, Cholesterol, Low-Density Lipoprotein, High-Density Lipoprotein, and Blood Pressure Genetics, Obesity, and Healthy Diets Weight Loss Eating Healthy Sugar-Sweetened Sodas Physical Activity and Exercise Poverty and Child Nutrition References Other Integrative Medical Treatments Acupuncture Stress Stress Reduction Mind–Body Therapies: Meditation, Mindfulness, Dr. John Kabat-Zinn, and Guided Imagery Yoga ReferencesThe Placebo Effect Psychological Factors and Neurobiology Hormone and Immune Responses Placebo and Antidepressants Placebo Effect, Survival Effects, and Other Questions References Stem Cells Stem Cells in Medicine Embryonic Stem Cells Induced Pluripotent Stem Cells iPSCs and Yamanaka Factors Somatic Cell Nuclear Transfer Scientific Problems to Be Solved for iPSCs Present Use of iPSCs for Medicine Stem Cells and Parkinson’s Disease and Macular Degeneration References Scientific Studies and Medical Trials Case Reports RCTs Other Types of Medical Studies and the Issues with RCTs Animal Studies Cell Studies Computer-Based Modeling Peer Review of Medical and Scientific Studies Leading to Publication References Medical Training for Personalized Medicine Genomics and the Medical School Curriculum National Resources for Genomics Training Collaboration across Medical Disciplines for Personalized Medicine ReferencesDrug, Hospital, and Medical Care Costs Healthcare Costs Drug Costs What Ails Us Adding Personalized and Preventative Medicine to our Healthcare System Conclusions References Ethics International and National Laws Protecting Patients Privacy of Patient Records and the Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act Patient Autonomy, Well-Being, and Equity Applicability of Personalized Therapeutics Research Ethics Artificial Intelligence References Conclusions References Glossary of Scientific Terms

Gloria Gronowicz, PhD, is currently a professor in the Department of Surgery at the University of Connecticut Health Center in Farmington, USA. Dr. Gronowicz received her PhD in biological sciences from Columbia University and completed a postdoctoral fellowship at the University of Chicago. She has published more than 100 articles in peer-reviewed journals, ten book chapters and many scientific abstracts for national and international meetings. For more than 25 years, Dr. Gronowicz has had continuous NIH funding and has been funded by numerous scientific and medical foundations for her research. Her research interests include bone biology, osteoporosis, aging, the response of bone cells to implant materials, otosclerosis and integrative/complementary medicine.