PhRMA report lists 241 drugs under development for blood cancer

WASHINGTON — More than 200 drugs for blood cancers are under development, according to a new report by a drug industry trade group.

The Pharmaceutical Research and Manufacturers of America said 241 medicines were in clinical development or under review by the Food and Drug Administration, including 98 for lymphoma, 97 for leukemia, 52 for multiple myeloma and 24 for malignancies of the bone marrow, blood and lymph nodes.

"Complex diseases like blood cancer provide a daunting healthcare challenge for patients, their doctors and the biopharmaceutical research ecosystem," PhRMA president and CEO John Castellani said. "The more than 240 medicines in development for leukemia, lymphoma and other forms of blood cancer reflect biopharmaceutical research companies' commitment to build on progress to date and help bring new treatment options to patients."

The group noted that according to the Leukemia and Lymphoma Society, the five-year survival rate for non-Hodgkin lymphoma was 40% in the early 1960s, and the rate for leukemia was 14%; by the last decade, those rates had climbed respectively to 86% and 57%, thanks to improvements in treatment.

In other news, the group said it had raised more than $100,000 to establish a new grant for blood cancer research and that 60 of its employees would participate in this Sunday's inaugural Nike Women Half Marathon D.C. to benefit the Leukemia and Lymphoma Society's Team in Training program.