There can be confusion and frustration when things we know to be true don’t necessarily mesh with the direction of public policy. 

Often times the best way to prevent frustration is to communicate what we know to those who influence and generate health policy.

That’s why Friends of Cancer Research is cosponsoring a symposium “The Myth of Average:  Why Individual Patient Differences Matter.”  The all-day event is taking place at the Omni Shoreham hotel in Washington, DC, on November 30.

The subject matter being discussed at this symposium is both timely and extremely important to patients and their caregivers.  We know that there is no such thing as the ‘average’ cancer patient; each patient is unique and responds in different ways to specific treatments.  Researchers continue to pioneer more personalized medicine and have learned volumes about how to better tailor different medications and dosage levels to the genetic makeup of the individual.

That’s why it is vital that comparative effectiveness research (CER) is focused on achieving greater clinical effectiveness based on an individual patient’s needs.

Dr. Ellen Sigal, chairperson of Friends of Cancer Research, is one of the speakers at the NPC event, and it’s also going to provide an opportunity to interact with Dr. Joe Selby, the executive director of the Patient-Centered Outcomes Research Institute (PCORI) and Dr. Patrick Conway, chief medical officer of the Center for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS).

Providing the right treatment, to the right individual patient, at the right time, is the most important goal of truly personalized and effective care.  That’s a message that needs to come across at this event.

More information about the NPC event can be found at www.npcnow.org/myth2012.