The new BCPM aims to develop new drugs and methods that improve the quality of patients' treatments and reduce the costs of the health system through the use of effective therapies.
The BCPM is interdisciplinary and interfacultory. It connects technical platforms such as Inselspital's "Liquid Biobank" or the University's "Next Generation Sequencing" platform with organizational units such as the Department of Biomedical Research. The Center encompasses areas such as genomics, health economics, data protection and statistics. Concrete projects should develop new therapies and methods, also in collaboration with external partners from the scientific and private industries.
"The objective of precision medicine is to provide patients with the right therapy at the right time ; it represents the medicine of the future," says Mark A. Rubin, Director of the Department for Biomedical Research and Director of the new Bern Center for Precision Medicine.
Taking advantage of synergies
"With the Bern Center for Precision Medicine, we are combining the strengths of the University and the Inselspital, which already exist within various research groups, infrastructures and clinics," explains Christian Leumann, Dean of the University of Bern.
For Daniel Candinas, Vice-President of Research at the University of Bern, this is a logical step : "Precision medicine is a team effort. Physicians and clinical researchers combine their expertise with that of data analysts to provide the best diagnosis and treatment to patients in clinics."
