The Leukemia & Lymphoma Society (LLS) is proud to congratulate Dr. Brian Druker for receiving the prestigious 2009 Lasker~DeBakey Clinical Medical Research Award. Dr. Druker, along with Dr. Nicholas Lydon and Dr. Charles Sawyers, is receiving the award because of their discovery of and successful clinical trials with Gleevec®, a drug that benefits chronic myelogenous leukemia (CML) patients.
Dr. Druker received critical funding from LLS in 1995 for his research on the tyrosine kinase inhibitor, STI-571, later named Gleevec, through the Translational Research Program. He discovered that CML cells that had been taken from patients were killed by this inhibitor. In 1998, Dr. Druker was able to test Gleevec in clinical trials and 53 of the 54 patients who participated achieved normal blood counts.
Dr. Druker continued to receive funding, and in 2000 was awarded additional funds through LLS’s Specialized Center of Research (SCOR) program. In 2001, Gleevec was approved by the FDA.
Many CML patients, who once may have considered their diagnosis terminal, are now leading normal and healthy lives because of Dr. Brian Druker’s breakthrough research. LLS is proud to have funded this innovative research, and appreciates the valuable work that Dr. Druker continues to provide to our patients and their families.
Visit the Lasker Foundation website to learn more about the Lasker~DeBakey Clinical Medial Research Award, and watch this eight-minute video that highlights the important research of these three doctors.
Have a question about CML or Gleevec? Call the Information Resource Center at 1-800-955-4572 or send us an email.
