Challenges to Bringing Personalized Medicine to a Low-Resource Setting in Peru

Nelly Solis, Elizabeth Zavaleta, Patrik Wernhoff, Constantino Dominguez-Barrera and Mev Dominguez-Valentin
Additional contact information
Nelly Solis: Universidad Católica Los Ángeles de Chimbote, Instituto de Investigación, Chimbote 02804, Peru
Elizabeth Zavaleta: Universidad Católica Los Ángeles de Chimbote, Instituto de Investigación, Chimbote 02804, Peru
Patrik Wernhoff: Department of Medical Genetics, Institute of Clinical Medicine, University of Oslo and Oslo University Hospital, 0424 Oslo, Norway
Constantino Dominguez-Barrera: Independent Researcher, Lima Lima 39, Peru
Mev Dominguez-Valentin: Department of Tumor Biology, Oslo University Hospital, The Norwegian Radium Hospital, 0379 Oslo, Norway

IJERPH, 2021, vol. 18, issue 4, 1-5

Abstract: We provide an overview of the challenges that low-resource setting cities are facing, including a lack of global implementation of cancer screening programs, accurate data and statistics that may aid the health authorities and guide future public health activities, as well as reorient strategies, interventions and budgets to promote lifestyles that help prevent disease. Current cancer care does not fully reflect ethnic, cultural, environmental and resource differences. Herein, we described a snapshot of the cancer mortality and morbidity from a hospital that cares a rural and low-income population from Peru, called Chimbote (316,966 inhabitants) and showed the limitation of access to oncological care and genetic services. The city is located in the region of Ancash, which is a department of Northern Peru. Of note, we identified a greater proportion of cancer cases than previously described, with a young age of onset and differential profile of the most frequent cancers. With the emergence of increasingly effective interventions, it becomes paramount that populations living in resource-limited settings have access to cancer services and participate in genetics and genomic research.

Keywords: precision medicine; low-resource setting; vulnerable population (search for similar items in EconPapers)
JEL-codes: I I1 I3 Q Q5 (search for similar items in EconPapers)
Date: 2021
References: View complete reference list from CitEc
Citations:

Downloads: (external link)
https://www.mdpi.com/1660-4601/18/4/1470/pdf (application/pdf)
https://www.mdpi.com/1660-4601/18/4/1470/ (text/html)

Related works:
This item may be available elsewhere in EconPapers: Search for items with the same title.

Export reference: BibTeX RIS (EndNote, ProCite, RefMan) HTML/Text

Persistent link: https://EconPapers.repec.org/RePEc:gam:jijerp:v:18:y:2021:i:4:p:1470-:d:493219

Access Statistics for this article

IJERPH is currently edited by Ms. Jenna Liu

More articles in IJERPH from MDPI
Bibliographic data for series maintained by MDPI Indexing Manager ().