SecureConsent: A Blockchain-Based Dynamic and Secure Consent Management for Genomic Data Sharing

SecureConsent: A Blockchain-Based Dynamic and Secure Consent Management for Genomic Data Sharing
Ibrahim Tariq Javed, Victoria Lemieux, Dean A. Regier
International Conference on Smart Communications and Networking, 28-30 May 2024
Abstract
The potential of precision oncology initiatives heavily relies on sharing and analyzing genomic data across diverse patient groups. However, the sensitivity of genomic data raises concerns about consent, and data control, hindering patient participation in such initiatives. Existing healthcare data-sharing methods are unable to fully address these issues, and they also do not take into account patient preferences and requirements within their models. Therefore in this paper, we introduce “SecureConsent”, a Patient-Centric consent management system designed for sharing genomic data. SecureConsent caters to patient preferences, allowing them to have control over how their genomic data is shared and used within precision oncology initiatives. It facilitates patients to make informed decisions and modify their consent at any moment through the implementation of dynamic informed consent. Moreover, it integrates a decentralized access control mechanism to establish a robust and patient-centric framework. SecureConsent also presents a user-friendly interface for simple interaction between patients and those requesting data. We conduct a performance evaluation of our blockchain-based model to establish its system efficiency, which includes analyzing gas cost, latency, and transaction throughput.