Vision
“The potential for progress in this broad subject goes beyond new cures for disease and the practice of medicine. It encompasses virtually every part of the University, including areas that explore fundamental issues of human self-knowledge and the legal, policy, and economic implications of revolutionary changes in our understanding of human biology.”
Precision medicine is medical diagnosis, prevention and treatment based on an individual’s variation in genes, environment, and lifestyle. Knowledge of an individual’s personal genome allows us to make informed decisions about the best medical care available, for that person.
From fundamental discoveries to the clinic, Columbia University is a world leader in medicine, science, and technology. The Columbia Precision Medicine Initiative utilizes the vast intellectual resources of Columbia faculty to drive this revolution in health care.
Precision medicine will leverage and increase clinicians’ ability to understand relevant biological differences between individuals to deliver tailored medical care. However, the vision of precision medicine - a new, more precise, deliberate, preventative, and affordable paradigm of care - demands an abundance of new scientific discovery as well as an understanding of potential effects on society.
Columbia University brings together a unique pipeline of fundamental and applied science, translational medicine, and clinical practice. Columbia will apply its expertise in neurological and psychiatric diseases, reproductive medicine, molecular and systems based cancer research and treatment, and other fields, to further the goals of precision medicine. The faculty that build this unique pipeline of fundamental discovery will also play a key role in the education of the next generation of scientists and medical professionals. In addition, the University’s world-renowned faculty in social sciences, business, law and ethics, must be applied to optimize healthcare across the population.
The Columbia Precision Medicine Initiative harnesses our breadth of scholarship across the sciences, social sciences, business and law to lead the global effort to increase the reach and significance of precision medicine in the lives of patients.