A global view of the challenges and limitations of precision medicine for genitourinary cancers

Abstract

Prostate and bladder cancers are the most common genitourinary cancers. In the past 2 decades, there has been increasing drug approval for these cancers, but there are patients who inherently do not respond or progress on such therapies highlighting the need for a better understanding of disease biology and mechanisms of resistance. Precision medicine has attempted to better select patients for specific therapies, although many advances have taken place in this field, access to targeted therapies and technology is distinct in different parts of the world. In this special Seminars issue, precision medicine and derived therapies were explored, as well as the impact on the management of prostate and bladder cancer, specially focusing on the challenges and limitations encountered by the international community when attempting to incorporate and implement the best clinical practice as recommended by worldwide accepted guidelines.