Theranostics could translate personalized medicine from research to reality by harnessing molecular imaging to target drug delivery to specific cellular features characteristic of an individual patient's disease. However, the nature of individualized medicine also may be the Achilles' heel for theranostics. The potential for a pharmaceutical blockbuster is next to nil because each treatment will target a select group of patients. As some researchers explore the clinical potential in areas from prostate cancer to diabetes, others are troubleshooting regulatory and economic hurdles.
展开▼
