At Roche, personalised healthcare – also known as PHC – is a key area of focus, combining pioneering science, data, analytics and technology to advance new discoveries and improve patients’ lives.

For many years, personalised healthcare meant testing for a disease-related biomarker and providing a targeted treatment. Today, we’re expanding and connecting this personalised approach across the patient care continuum to deliver evidence-based, technology-enabled healthcare solutions tailored to the individual.

By using data, analytics and technology across R&D and the care continuum, we are drawing closer to our goal of improving lives and advancing better health at a lower cost to people and to society.

In order to bring the promise of personalised healthcare to life, Roche is focusing on four key aspects of care:

• Early detection and accurate diagnosis

• Individualised care

• Access to optimal care

• Remote care and monitoring

Detecting signs of illness – or potential illness – and diagnosing disease as early as possible is central to improving outcomes for patients and making healthcare more affordable and sustainable. Early and accurate detection and diagnosis enable healthcare providers and patients to select the right care when prevention is still possible and the chance of successful treatment – or even cure – is greater. Patients who receive the best care as soon as possible are more likely to experience good long-term results and a better quality of life. Better patient outcomes from the start may reduce the cost of care for society.

Recent advances in science and technology enable us to detect illness earlier and gain a much greater understanding of each patient’s unique treatment needs. By making these technologies a standard part of healthcare, we can help patients remain healthy longer and receive the best tailored care from the beginning – the first step toward improving health and making healthcare more efficient and effective for everyone.

The fundamental question in healthcare has traditionally been: which treatment will help the most people with this particular disease? Personalised healthcare focuses on a different question: what is the best care for the individual?

The answer may be influenced by a number of factors, including genetics, disease biology and severity, and the experience of other people with similar characteristics. Understanding each individual's health and illness in greater detail not only helps tailor treatment to people's specific needs, but also gives us valuable insights into entire populations. These insights improve individual outcomes and help us develop the next generation of medicines and solutions.

The journey begins with early and accurate diagnosis, which enables patients to receive treatment targeted to their disease and increases the likelihood of positive outcomes. Remote monitoring tools can track how well the targeted treatment is working for the patient from day to day and keep them connected to healthcare providers, who can adjust the course of care as needed.

Shifting from a one-size-fits-all approach to healthcare to tailored treatment designed to address each patient’s unique needs will improve results and the way people experience care. Personalised healthcare will be a benefit to society as better outcomes for individual patients translate to more efficient, affordable and sustainable care for entire populations.

Today only a fraction of humanity receives the best healthcare. We know that advances in technology and care can pale into insignificance unless they reach those who need them most. In many countries, the barriers to access are significant. There are many reasons as to why effective and efficient healthcare may not be available to all, why the latest innovations are not widely adopted and integrated into care, and why tailored care plans are not always accessible. For example, lack of adequate insurance coverage may make it difficult or impossible for many patients to pay for the best care. For other patients, personal circumstances, such as distance from clinics or hospitals or lack of mobility, may prevent them from receiving the care they need.

At Roche, we want to ensure all patients have access to the most optimal care based on their individual needs. To do so, we work with patients, health systems, governments and others to understand and ultimately try to take down the obstacles impeding us from delivering the best care to the people in need. Furthermore, we continuously share data demonstrating the way holistic approaches to care – including early and accurate diagnosis, targeted treatment, and ongoing remote care and monitoring – improve patient outcomes and reduce costs to society in the long term.

To us, personalised healthcare means far more than improving treatment – it’s about improving life for every person. We can only achieve that goal if everyone has access to the best care throughout their lives.

Knowledge is power when it comes to providing patients with the best care over the course of their lives. Armed with a continuous flow of accurate and reliable information , people can take the necessary steps to maintain their health and manage their illnesses more effectively.

Unfortunately, periodic visits with healthcare providers only give us snapshots of a person’s health. Subtle but important changes may be missed, along with the opportunity to start or adjust to a treatment when it could have the biggest impact on a person’s health.

Digital health technologies have transformed patient care. They allow us to gather and share more information about a person’s health – in real time – than was ever possible before, while also maintaining a connection with patients’ care teams that does not necessitate in-person visits. At Roche, we view these technologies as essential to delivering personalised care because they promote better experiences and outcomes for patients, and empower them to play a more independent role in their own care. Digital pathology tools also allow for information to be shared with healthcare professionals around the world. By uncovering nuances in how health and illness change over time, digital health technology informs the next innovations in personalised care.

Ultimately, ongoing remote monitoring and care will help people stay healthy longer, get the right treatment sooner, manage their care more effectively, and reduce the need for advanced care (such as hospitalisation) – all with fewer visits to healthcare providers. Thus, they will make healthcare a better experience for everyone and more sustainable for society.