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I think one of the most important goals in oncology is to make sure that all patients
have access to personalized medicine; that all patients have access to specific information
about their own genome, about their own genetic makeup; and that their family history is incorporated
into their treatment planning. The dilemma we face is that 80% of patients
actually present in the community and about 20% in the academic setting. We cannot assume
that everybody is going to be sent to an academic center to get their cancer treatment.
There are a couple of barriers in our way right now, and a big one is education. We
need to make sure that we are educating all physicians on the new information that's
before us right now. We're in a world today where we have an unprecedented amount of data,
and the key is going to be turning these data into really good actionable information for
cancer patients. The tools are here, and folks are using the tools in a lot of places, but
I don't think it's necessary that every community physician have a sequencer on their
desktop. What's important is that they have access to those tools through other resources,
tools that they can present to their patients, so that the information then gets incorporated
into treatment planning. We have to work together. It's going to
be a collaborative effort, clearly driven by the academic institutions and the leading
centers, but that information has to get to the community setting so that it's available
to all patients who present with cancer and need to have a personalized treatment plan