Personalized medicine in Brazil: a new paradigm, old problems

Abstract

Purpose Personalized medicine (PM) encompasses a set of procedures, technologies and medications; the term became more prominent from the 2000s onwards and stems from the mapping of the human genome. The purposes of this study were to analyse the development stage of the process of technological innovation for PM and the obstacles that prevent PM from being adopted in the public health system in Brazil. Design/methodology/approach As a research method, this paper opts for a case study carried out at the Hospital das Clínicas, which belongs to São Paulo Medical School. In total, 22 in-depth interviews were carried out at the hospital to identify current practices in PM, future prospects and barriers imposed to the adoption of PM technologies in public health. Findings Personalized or precision medicine is already a reality for a small portion of the Brazilian population and is gradually gaining ground in public health care. One finding is that such changes are occurring in a disjointed manner in an incomplete and under development health innovation system. The analysis pointed out that the obstacles identified in Brazil are the same as those faced by high-income countries such as regulation, lack of clinical studies and need to adapt clinical studies to PM. They appear in all stages of the innovation cycle, from research to widespread use. Research limitations/implications The research method was a case study, so the findings cannot be extrapolated to other contexts. A limited number of professionals were interviewed, their opinions may not reflect those of their organizations. Originality/value There are several studies that discuss how health-care systems in high-income countries could incorporate these new technologies, but only a few focuses on low or middle-income countries such as Brazil.