Quantum computing holds substantial potential for applications in biology and medicine, spanning from the simulation of biomolecules to machine learning methods for subtyping cancers on the basis of clinical features. This potential is encapsulated by the concept of a quantum advantage, which is contingent on a reduction in the consumption of a computational resource, such as time, space or data. Here, we distill the concept of a quantum advantage into a simple framework to aid researchers in biology and medicine pursuing the development of quantum applications. We then apply this framework to a wide variety of computational problems relevant to these domains in an effort to (i) assess the potential of practical advantages in specific application areas and (ii) identify gaps that may be addressed with novel quantum approaches. In doing so, we provide an extensive survey of the intersection of biology and medicine with the current landscape of quantum algorithms and their potential advantages. While we endeavour to identify specific computational problems that may admit practical advantages throughout this work, the rapid pace of change in the fields of quantum computing, classical algorithms and biological research implies that this intersection will remain highly dynamic for the foreseeable future.
Quantum computing holds substantial potential for applications in biology and medicine, spanning from the simulation of biomolecules to machine learning methods for subtyping cancers on the basis of clinical features. This potential is encapsulated by the concept of a quantum advantage, which is contingent on a reduction in the consumption of a computational resource, such as time, space or data. Here, we distill the concept of a quantum advantage into a simple framework to aid researchers in biology and medicine pursuing the development of quantum applications. We then apply this framework to a wide variety of computational problems relevant to these domains in an effort to (i) assess the potential of practical advantages in specific application areas and (ii) identify gaps that may be addressed with novel quantum approaches. In doing so, we provide an extensive survey of the intersection of biology and medicine with the current landscape of quantum algorithms and their potential advantages. While we endeavour to identify specific computational problems that may admit practical advantages throughout this work, the rapid pace of change in the fields of quantum computing, classical algorithms and biological research implies that this intersection will remain highly dynamic for the foreseeable future.
Quantum computing (QC) represents a paradigm shift in computational power, offering unique capabilities for addressing complex problems that are infeasible for classical computers. This review paper provides a detailed account of the current state of QC, with a particular focus on its applications within medicine. It explores fundamental concepts such as qubits, superposition, and entanglement, as well as the evolution of QC from theoretical foundations to practical advancements. The paper covers significant milestones where QC has intersected with medical research, including breakthroughs in drug discovery, molecular modeling, genomics, and medical diagnostics. Additionally, key quantum techniques such as quantum algorithms, quantum machine learning (QML), and quantum-enhanced imaging are explained, highlighting their relevance in healthcare. The paper also addresses challenges in the field, including hardware limitations, scalability, and integration within clinical environments. Looking forward, the paper discusses the potential for quantum-classical hybrid systems and emerging innovations in quantum hardware, suggesting how these advancements may accelerate the adoption of QC in medical research and clinical practice. By synthesizing reliable knowledge and presenting it through a comprehensive lens, this paper serves as a valuable reference for researchers interested in the transformative potential of QC in medicine.
The recent biotechnological progress has allowed life scientists and physicians to access an unprecedented, massive amount of data at all levels (molecular, supramolecular, cellular and so on) of biological complexity. So far, mostly classical computational efforts have been dedicated to the simulation, prediction or de novo design of biomolecules, in order to improve the understanding of their function or to develop novel therapeutics. At a higher level of complexity, the progress of omics disciplines (genomics, transcriptomics, proteomics and metabolomics) has prompted researchers to develop informatics means to describe and annotate new biomolecules identified with a resolution down to the single cell, but also with a high-throughput speed. Machine learning approaches have been implemented to both the modelling studies and the handling of biomedical data. Quantum computing (QC) approaches hold the promise to resolve, speed up or refine the analysis of a wide range of these computational problems. Here, we review and comment on recently developed QC algorithms for biocomputing, with a particular focus on multi-scale modelling and genomic analyses. Indeed, differently from other computational approaches such as protein structure prediction, these problems have been shown to be adequately mapped onto quantum architectures, the main limit for their immediate use being the number of qubits and decoherence effects in the available quantum machines. Possible advantages over the classical counterparts are highlighted, along with a description of some hybrid classical/quantum approaches, which could be the closest to be realistically applied in biocomputation.
Quantum computing is a developing computational paradigm that uses the principles of quantum mechanics, like superposition and entanglement, to execute composite calculations beyond the abilities of conventional computers. Currently, implementation of this technology in medicine has the potential to revolutionize various domains like drug discovery, protein folding, genomics, medical imaging, and personalized healthcare. By allowing high-dimensional data processing and accurate molecular simulations, quantum computing may enhance biomedical research and thereby improving clinical decision-making. Moreover integrating quantum computing with artificial intelligence, mainly through quantum machine learning, further accelerates its capability to assess vast complex biological datasets and generate precise predictive models. Applications like disease prediction, drug response optimization, and advanced diagnostic imaging further validates its growing importance in modern healthcare. However, the implementation of quantum computing in medicine is presently limited by technical challenges, that includes decoherence, error correction, and scalability, as well as practical problems like high budgets and lack of skilled professionals. Moreover, ethical concerns play a major hurdle related to data privacy and healthcare inequality also require cautious consideration. In spite of these challenges, ongoing developments in hybrid quantum-classical systems and quantum algorithms reveal that a promising future, particularly placing quantum computing as an effective transformative force in next-generation medicine.
The use of quantum computing1 in healthcare represents a significant shift with the potential to revolutionize medical research, diagnostics, and treatment. Quantum computing can process and analyze large datasets much faster than classical computing, offering new opportunities in healthcare. This paper examines the various ways quantum computing can be applied in healthcare, such as in drug discovery, genetic research, personalized medicine, and complex disease modeling. By using quantum algorithms, researchers can identify new treatment targets and simulate the effects of drugs on human biology in ways that were previously impossible, which can reduce the time and cost of bringing new drugs to market. Quantum computing also allows for analyzing large genomic datasets2, which can help tailor treatments to individual genetic profiles. Additionally, this technology helps in modeling complex biological systems and disease processes, providing insights into the mechanisms of diseases at a molecular level and enabling the development of more effective treatments. However, integrating quantum computing into healthcare comes with challenges such as technical limitations, the need for specialized expertise, data security concerns, and ethical considerations. This paper provides a comprehensive overview of the potential applications of quantum computing in healthcare, addresses the associated challenges, and discusses the future directions of this growing field, emphasizing the importance of interdisciplinary collaboration in fully utilizing quantum technologies in medicine. In recent years, quantum computing has rapidly advanced and attracted significant interest from academia and industry due to its unique ability to process information differently, resulting in previously unattainable computational capabilities. Despite its potential, the full impact of quantum computing on healthcare has not been thoroughly explored. This survey paper provides a systematic analysis of quantum computing's various capabilities in improving healthcare systems, focusing on its potential to transform compute-intensive healthcare tasks such as drug discovery, personalized medicine, DNA sequencing4, medical imaging5, and operational optimization. Through a comprehensive review of existing literature, we have developed taxonomies6 covering different aspects, including background and enabling technologies, applications, requirements, architectures, security, open issues, and future research directions, offering a comprehensive view of the quantum computing paradigm for healthcare. Our survey aims to assist new and experienced researchers in quantum computing and healthcare by helping them comprehend the current research landscape, identify potential opportunities and challenges, and make informed decisions when developing new architectures and applications for quantum computing in healthcare
Quantum computing has emerged as a disruptive paradigm which can transform the information heavy areas of knowledge such as precision medicine. The expanding needs of precision medicine based on customized therapy in the light of genomics, molecular profiling, and clinical data suggest that the computation tasks can demand computational capabilities unattainable by the traditional high-performance computing. Quantum algorithms, which are founded upon the laws of superposition, entanglement and quantum parallelism, offer a scale factor of exponential on a problem in genomics, drug discovery, medical imaging and biomarker discovery. This is a review article that is a narrative synthesis of emerging trends at the interface of quantum computing and precision medicine. In particular, it discusses women topics such as patient stratification and imaging analysis with quantum machine learning (QML), protein-ligand interactions and drug discovery with quantum chemistry simulations, and quantum-classical architectures to combine complex biomedical data with clinical decision-making. Initial implementations show evidence of proof-of-concept utility in accelerating the sequencing of genomes, improving the accuracy of diagnostic imaging, and improving treatment design. With those developments, there are still major issues, such as the problem of qubit coherence, scalability of algorithms, barriers to the integration of data, and ethical concerns about transparency and fair access. To overcome these obstacles, it is necessary to physically co-evolve domain-specific quantum algorithms, powerful error-correction protocols, and cloud-friendly frameworks that can connect biomedical research to current quantum computing devices. This review offers a roadmap on how quantum computing can be leveraged to drive precision medicine to scalable, interpretable, and patient-centered healthcare solutions by outlining both early uses and future opportunities.
Abstract Quantum computing hardware and software have made enormous strides over the last years1. Questions around quantum computing’s impact on research and society have changed from “if” to “when/how”. The 2020s have been described as the “quantum decade”, and the first production solutions that drive scientific and business value are expected to become available over the next years. Medicine, including fields in healthcare and life sciences, has seen a flurry of quantum-related activities and experiments in the last few years (although medicine and quantum theory have arguably been entangled ever since Schrödinger’s cat2). The initial focus was on biochemical and computational biology problems3,4,5,6,7,8; recently, however, clinical and medical quantum solutions have drawn increasing interest. The rapid emergence of quantum computing in health and medicine necessitates a mapping of the landscape. In this review, clinical and medical proof-of-concept quantum computing applications are outlined and put into perspective. These consist of over 40 experimental and theoretical studies from the last few years. The use case areas span genomics, clinical research and discovery, diagnostics, and treatments and interventions. Quantum machine learning (QML) in particular has rapidly evolved and shown to be competitive with classical benchmarks in recent medical research. Near-term QML algorithms, for instance, quantum support vector classifiers and quantum neural networks, have been trained with diverse clinical and real-world data sets. This includes studies in generating new molecular entities as drug candidates, diagnosing based on medical image classification, predicting patient persistence, forecasting treatment effectiveness, and tailoring radiotherapy. The use cases and the applied algorithms are summarized. In addition, this review provides an outlook on medicine in the quantum era. There has been much discussion about healthcare’s journey towards precision medicine and the quadruple aim (better health, lower costs, enhanced patient experiences, and improved healthcare practitioner work lives)9. While a range of technical and ethical challenges remain, quantum computing is poised to become a key enabler for advancing towards the holy grail: keeping people healthy through proactive medical care and guidance at the level of an individual.