Genome technologies, precision medicine and innovative therapies

Abstract

We all share a common ancestry, and nowhere is this more apparent than in our genomes. Despite our differences, most of the information contained in our genomes is highly similar, if not identical. Yet it is the differences that make each of us unique. It is also these differences that have allowed for the delineation of a relatively new concept in modern medicine, namely that of ‘precision medicine’. In contrast to ‘personalised medicine’, precision medicine aims to identify differences at a population level, thereby guiding the application of genome technologies to populations in a manner that results in improved outcomes.