A rare type of blood cancer, multiple myeloma, is being treated by 150 patients in the Phoenix area using a potential cure called CARVYKTI. This therapy modifies a patient’s immune system to fight cancer.
Susan Lehman, a 60-year-old mother of four, was diagnosed with multiple myeloma over a decade ago. She has undergone various treatments, including two stem cell transplants and multiple relapses. However, after trying CARVYKTI, her oncologist reports significant improvements in just two months.
Lehman is now hiking and almost back to normal. The immunotherapy uses the patient’s own immune cells to target cancer cells.
CARVYKTI has been approved for three years but new data shows it not only slows down disease progression but also helps patients live longer. Historically, these patients had a poor outcome, with an average survival of under a year.
The therapy is being hailed as a major medical breakthrough and could be considered a possible cure. Dr. Sumit Madan says if CARVYKTI can extend the life of multiple myeloma patients by 10-15 years, it would be seen as a cure.
This breakthrough has given new hope to patients like Lehman. She expresses her gratitude, saying “this is the most hopeful that I’ve been in a long time.” The data illustrating this improved survival rate will be presented at the American Society of Clinical Oncology Annual Meeting in Chicago.
Source: https://www.azfamily.com/2025/05/30/drug-labeled-potential-cure-multiple-myeloma-treating-phoenix-area-patients