Precision medicine is booming for cancer care. What’s next

The current oncology landscape is undeniably complex. One of the leading dynamic topics in cancer care is precision medicine, which uses a patient's unique genetic profile to guide diagnosis and treatment.

At the Academy of Managed Care Pharmacy (AMCP) annual meeting in Nashville, Tennessee, Prime Therapeutics (Prime) oncology experts Abby Kim, PharmD, senior director of clinical strategy and oncology specialty solutions, and Sneha Sharma, PharmD, director of specialty clinical solutions, shared more about this topic in their session, "Oncology in focus: What's hot, what's next?"

How precision medicine has transformed the treatment landscape

Although precision medicine has been a managed care principle for decades, it's becoming more widely accepted in the treatment of disease, Kim said.

"It's about delivering the right drug at the right dose at the right time, shifting oncology away from a one-size-fits-all chemotherapy treatment," Kim said. "These therapies are generally more effective and better tolerated by patients. The current challenge is delivering precision oncology at scale."

From 2010-2015, precision oncology saw rapid growth as part of what Kim described as a "targeted therapy boom," with the precision medicine market expected to reach $237 billion by 2031. And while it's a more effective method of therapy, according to one study of patients with non-small cell lung cancer, only 36% of patients received targeted therapy, Kim shared..

Current barriers to treatment

Among a poll of attendees, one of the greatest barriers to delivering these therapies to patients is time. However, a complex regulatory landscape can also complicate how patients receive precision oncology treatments, Sharma said.

"While there is no federal legislation on precision medicine coverage, more than 20 states do have laws that cover various aspects of how precision therapy can be covered," Sharma
said.

Despite these complexities, Sharma shared there is reason to be optimistic about the future of these therapies. "Pharmacists, as part of an interdisciplinary team, can help bridge the gaps for provider and patients," Sharma said, adding how advances in diagnostics, such as liquid biopsies, can help patients get the therapy they need quicker and more effectively.

Liquid biopsies involve collecting DNA shed by tumors that may be hard to access. But this advancement in diagnostics does have some drawbacks, as liquid biopsies are often not covered by many health insurance plans.

Sharma said she is hopeful that may change over time, noting that among key barriers to delivering on the promise of precision oncology are "provider and patient awareness."

Kim also expressed optimism. "I like to look at cancer therapy as a continuum, looking at where we've been to understand where we're going," she said.

Learn more about Prime's oncology solutions

Read more of the leading insights from AMCP 2026