Multiple myeloma, a common and painful blood cancer considered incurable, may finally be facing a turning point. In a clinical trial funded by Johnson & Johnson and conducted in partnership with Legend Biotech, a third of 97 patients with advanced myeloma experienced lasting remission after undergoing an experimental immunotherapy. Remarkably, the cancer has not returned in those patients—even after five years.
“This is the first time we are really talking seriously about cure,” said Dr. Norman Sharpless, former director of the National Cancer Institute, according to The New York Times. These unprecedented results were presented at the American Society of Clinical Oncology’s annual meeting on June 3 and published in the Journal of Clinical Oncology.
The therapy offers new hope for patients who have exhausted every other option and are approaching hospice care. For oncologists long accustomed to managing, rather than conquering this aggressive disease, the trial marks a historic breakthrough.
Indeed, new medical solutions have been instrumental in saving countless lives. Take a look back on the inventions that revolutionized the therapeutic field in this gallery. Click on for more.