The UK Markey Cancer Center on Wednesday hosted its inaugural Precision Medicine Symposium, aimed at teaching oncology healthcare providers how to implement precision medicine into their clinical practice.

Precision medicine in cancer treatment focuses on understanding genetic mutations and using those mutations to select the best therapy for patients. Precision medicine is one of the recommendations highlighted by the White House Cancer Moonshot’s Blue Ribbon Panel. Presentations at Wednesday’s symposium included discussions about oncogenomic testing, Markey’s new Molecular Tumor Board, clinical trials and more.

Attending the symposium were more than 190 providers, including oncologists, hematologists, pathologists, radiologists, oncology nurses, researchers, pharmacists, genetic counselors, and cancer center administrators and leaders representing more than 20 different medical centers and healthcare entities across the region.

Breakout sessions allowed providers to meet in smaller groups with presenters and ask questions about precision-medicine issues, such as payment and reimbursement for Molecular Tumor Board recommendations.

The symposium concluded with a keynote speech from Dr. Shridar Ganesan, chief of molecular oncology at the Rutgers Cancer Institute of New Jersey.

“This event is so important because we want to bring precision medicine to all patients with cancer in Kentucky,” said Jill Kolesar, PhD, co-director of the Markey’s Molecular Tumor Board. “We’re bringing together clinicians and scientists to bring initiatives from the Markey Cancer Center to the entire Commonwealth of Kentucky.”

Watch a video below for more highlights from this exciting event.

Markey's Precision Medicine Symposium 2017 from University of Kentucky on Vimeo.