25 years ago, the FDA approved a pill that would change the way scientists treat cancer … for good. The pill was called Gleevec; it was designed specifically to treat CML, chronic myeloid leukemia, and it was one of the first targeted cancer therapies available. A quarter century after approval, it’s still being prescribed, as are second, third and fourth-generation drugs that followed in its footsteps. What made it so special – and so effective? Pharmaceutical correspondent <a href="https://www.npr.org/people/825275572/sydney-lupkin"target="_blank" >Sydney Lupkin</a> walks us through the history of the drug, and why it’s continued to change lives for decades. If you liked this episode, check out our other episodes with Sydney on <a href="https://lnk.to/3hvV3G"target="_blank" >accelerated drug approvals</a> and the <a href="https://lnk.to/IkOvWA"target="_blank" >development of GLP-1 pills</a>. Interested in more stories about medicine and medical treatment? Email us your question at <a href="mailto:shortwave@npr.org"target="_blank" >shortwave@npr.org</a>. Listen to every episode of Short Wave sponsor-free and support our work at NPR by signing up for Short Wave+ at <a href="http://plus.npr.org/shortwave"target="_blank" >plus.npr.org/shortwave</a>. See <a href="https://pcm.adswizz.com">pcm.adswizz.com</a> for information about our collection and use of personal data for sponsorship and to manage your podcast sponsorship preferences. <a href="https://www.npr.org/about-npr/179878450/privacy-policy">NPR Privacy Policy</a>

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Without this pill, lots of people would be dead

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