We are entering a new age of medicine. Every one of us is different. Not just in the way we look, but also in the way we behave. These differences in behaviour have profound impacts on our health, but also on how we respond to illness and treatments.
Every patient that walks through the doors of a hospital or doctor’s surgery needs to be seen as an individual and digital technology is enabling physicians to do this more effectively through the recording of digital biomarkers.
Digital biomarkers are defined as “objective, quantifiable physiological and behavioural data that are collected and measured through digital devices such as portables, wearables, implantables or digestibles” (1). Most people are now not far from their smartphone or tablet. The data that these devices collect about us could have the power to explain, influence and predict health-related outcomes.
Many companies have now jumped into the market of fitness trackers and other wearable devices that continuously record data about our every-day lives. Every one of these companies is eager to offer the latest technology to consumers to gain even more data about the individual. Devices that track the number of steps a person takes to the quality of sleep that person has are now a significant part of many people’s lives.
How are these data being used, and what does it mean for the every-day person?
Biomarkers are a crucial component of medical research. They form objective signs of the medical state of a patient which are measurable and reproducible (2). In many cases, they allow for the creation of clinical endpoints in clinical trials and enable the determination of the effectiveness of a particular treatment (3).
The age of data has brought a new class of biomarker. This type of lives within the high-speed fibres the internet. By keeping our phones in our pockets and by wearing our fitness trackers, we send data into the ether which can be processed by computers on the other side of the globe to provide an accurate reading of our current medical state. There have been many reports detailing how smartwatches have saved lives through their “Hard Fall Detection” systems and their ECG capabilities (4). However, the impact of these systems is much more far-reaching than the occasional fall.
These technologies could unlock the cure to diseases that currently remain untreatable. These facts have attracted the large technology companies to break into the medical space (5). Our “data selves” could be the key to the way conditions we may have are treated.
How many steps do you take every day? What is your heart-rate profile like throughout the day? How much exercise do you do every week? How much do you stand during the day? What does your sleep profile look show?
These questions and many more could form part of a profile that doctors may not even need to ask a patient about directly if it is fed straight into the doctor’s computer systems. In turn, AI systems and doctors may be able to generate a personalised treatment plan for each of their patients based on their digital profile.
Roche, one of the world’s largest pharmaceutical companies, is dedicating vast sums of money to break into this space, as they believe that digital biomarkers will transform the treatment of patients and that autonomously collected data will soon drive medicine (6, 7).
The field is fascinating and very young. However, there are still many pitfalls associated with the industry. Data privacy regulations is an obvious concern, and there is a responsibility on companies to ensure that the data that they collect remain safe and are handled appropriately. While patient outcomes can significantly improve, regulators must stay vigilant to ensure compliance with laws and best practices (8).
It remains to be seen how this industry develops over time, but one thing is clear. With our phones in our pockets, our smartwatches on our wrists and our data in the cloud, physicians and technology companies will soon be in the position to adapt our treatments, monitor our health and possibly optimise our quality of life on a personalised and individual level, which may unlock the doors to longevity.
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