  Human genomic data carry unique information about an individual and offer
unprecedented opportunities for healthcare. The clinical interpretations
derived from large genomic datasets can greatly improve healthcare and pave the
way for personalized medicine. Sharing genomic datasets, however, pose major
challenges, as genomic data is different from traditional medical data,
indirectly revealing information about descendants and relatives of the data
owner and carrying valid information even after the owner passes away.
Therefore, stringent data ownership and control measures are required when
dealing with genomic data. In order to provide secure and accountable
infrastructure, blockchain technologies offer a promising alternative to
traditional distributed systems. Indeed, the research on blockchain-based
infrastructures tailored to genomics is on the rise. However, there is a lack
of a comprehensive literature review that summarizes the current
state-of-the-art methods in the applications of blockchain in genomics. In this
paper, we systematically look at the existing work both commercial and
academic, and discuss the major opportunities and challenges. Our study is
driven by five research questions that we aim to answer in our review. We also
present our projections of future research directions which we hope the
researchers interested in the area can benefit from.
