the cure.

Gleevec is not a curative drug. Howevever, a recent study showed that with Gleevec, 86 percent of patients are still alive after 7 years (I know, that also means that 14 in 100 still die in the same time frame).

An article on CNN.com (click here) talks about approaching cancer more as a chronic condition vs curative treatment. In short, treating cancer more like we treat heart disease and diabetes. For me, that's kinda what we're already doing. I often talk about the challenges/mortality of the stem cell/marrow transplant which to date is the only cure. Most doctors seem to think that managing chronic conditions is natural progression in medicine and one that can benefit overall patient outcomes.

So, what do you think?