thebiostories

🌏 Available in: English | 한국어 How Was Venetoclax Developed? The Australian Story Behind a Breakthrough Cancer Therapy ⏱ In 30 Seconds ✓ Venetoclax is a targeted cancer medicine that blocks BCL-2 , a protein that helps some cancer cells survive. ✓ Its development grew from decades of fundamental research into programmed cell death, or apoptosis . ✓ Scientists at WEHI played a key role in transforming BCL-2 from a biological discovery into a therapeutic target. ✓ Venetoclax is now used to treat several blood cancers, including chronic lymphocytic leukaemia and acute myeloid leukaemia . A Personal Note During my years at WEHI, I had the chance to see the later stages of the Venetoclax story unfolding around me, as clinical trials progressed and decades of research moved towards a treatment that could actually reach patients. I knew at the time that it was an important scientific achievement. But recently, I happened to read blogs where people with bl...

Venetoclax: How a “Molecular Off-Switch” Is Changing Blood Cancer Treatment How blocking BCL-2 allows blood cancer cells to restart their own self-destruct programme ⏱ In 30 Seconds ✓ Venetoclax is a targeted medicine that blocks BCL-2 , a survival protein used by some blood cancers. ✓ By inhibiting BCL-2, Venetoclax helps cancer cells restart apoptosis , their natural self-destruct programme. ✓ It is used in adults with CLL/SLL and in selected older or medically unfit adults with newly diagnosed AML . ✓ Venetoclax-based combinations have helped make fixed-duration treatment possible for many people with CLL. ✓ Because it can kill large numbers of cancer cells rapidly, treatment must be carefully managed to reduce the risk of tumour lysis syndrome . A Personal Note I recently came across a blog where people living with blood cancer and their families were sharing their experiences. Reading their stories made me think about what a drug like Venetoclax c...