10 Medical Advances That Will Shape the Future of Healthcare

These methods and machines are making the future of medicine far brighter.

By Christian Millman
Oct 23, 2019 5:00 AMNov 21, 2019 4:27 PM
Tooth Tattoo Sensor - AP Photo
The “tooth tattoo,” developed by researchers at Princeton, is a wireless chemical sensor that can detect bacteria and could be used as an early warning system against infection. (Credit: Frank Wojciechowski/Rex Features/Associated Press)

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Yogi Berra was right when he said, “The future ain’t what it used to be.” Only he wasn’t right in the way he meant it, which was usually the case. The future really isn’t what it used to be — it’s much, much brighter.

Consider the extraordinary time you live in: There has never been a period in history of such rapid advances in medical knowledge and technology. Now consider the even more extraordinary time you will live in: The following cures of the future are sinking their roots in the now.

A Crowd and a Source

Crowdsourcing’s basic premise, that individual knowledge can never match collective wisdom, applies to diagnostic medicine as well. Well-trained physicians and other health professionals typically diagnose health conditions. But some things confound even the experts, and even the experts confound some things.

Imagine a future where diagnoses are made or confirmed by a cast of thousands. It’s starting right now: If you have an unsolved medical case, you can submit your symptoms to the crowd-sourced CrowdMed website. 

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