Life in 2050: A Glimpse at Medicine in the Future

Welcome back to the "Life in 2050" series. In previous installments, we looked at how technological advancements, climate change, and changes in the geopolitical landscape will alter the nature of warfare, economics, living at home, education, transportation, and space exploration (in two installments) in the coming decades. Today, we will look at how these same changes and advancements will revolutionize medicine by the middle of this century. As with all the other aspects of life we've explored, this revolution is already well underway, but will accelerate dramatically as we get closer to 2050. This will present new opportunities for healthier living, but also new hazards. While it is safe to say that more people will be able to live longer, healthier lives in the future, it's also likely that future generations will face health threats that are less common, or even unknown, today.