Next up - six medical innovations that are poised to transform the way we fight disease
Reporter Ron Winslow talks to WSJ weekend Review editor Gary Rosen about astonishing medical advances that are finally moving from research and prototypes to practical treatments.
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In our era of instant gratification, the world of medicine seems like an outlier. The path from a promising discovery to an effective treatment often takes a decade or more.
But from that process—of fits and starts, progress and setbacks and finally more progress—grow the insights and advances that change the course of medicine.
A decade ago, the completion of the Human Genome Project sparked optimism that cures for debilitating diseases were just around the corner. Cures still generally elude us, but now the ability to map human DNA cheaply and quickly is yielding a torrent of data about the genetic drivers of disease—and a steady stream of patients who are benefiting from the knowledge. On other fronts, technology is putting more power in the hands of patients, and researchers are learning to combat disorders by harnessing the body's own ability to heal and grow.
A test developed by Foundation Medicine Inc. analyzes tumor DNA to help find targeted treatment options for patients with cancer.
A new surgical strategy helped 9-year-old Alexa Rand's body to essentially grow half a heart into a whole one.
Advances bring other challenges, including how to pay for them. Meanwhile, the complex biology that stymies gains for some patients sets goals for new advances.
Here are six of today's potentially transformative trends.
http://online.wsj.com/article/SB10001424127887323530404578205692226506324.html?mod=ITP_review_0
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