Daily pill may help treat blood cancer patients

Melbourne, July 26 (ANI): Blood cancer, which has traditionally given sufferers a survival time of just a few years, may soon be curable with the aid of a daily pill.

Cancer specialists meeting in Melbourne this weekend are likely to discuss how in future doctors should treat myeloma, an incurable blood cancer which effects thousands of people.

This form of cancer develops in the bone marrow, inhibits the production of normal blood cells, and causes symptoms such as anaemia, fatigue and infections.

"We are seeing a major advance in the treatment of multiple myeloma," news.com.au quoted Royal Melbourne Hospital oncologist Professor Jeffrey Szer as saying in a statement.

"In the past five years for instance, myeloma patient survival, which has traditionally been three to four years, has been significantly extended with the availability of innovative new medicines," Szer added.

Thos present at the meeting are likely to hear that a medicine called Revlimid may possibly be used as an oral treatment for the condition.

"We are seeing a significant improvement in quality of life and cancer survival rates," Szer said.

"There are a number of new treatment strategies that clinicians are adopting to enable them to achieve these outcomes.

"Revlimid is an example of an innovative new medicine that has a unique mechanism of action to kill cancer cells and prolong the patient's life. Compelling Revlimid clinical trail data is being discussed at (the) medical symposium this weekend with local and international experts, coinciding with the Leukaemia Foundation's public lecture," Szer added. (ANI)