28 May 2018 - On Aug. 30, the FDA approved a radical new cancer treatment that harnesses a patient’s immune system to attack tumor cells. The drug, known as Kymriah, grew out of research conducted and supported by the National Institutes of Health.

Seven weeks later the F.D.A. approved a second cancer therapy that uses similar technology. This treatment, Yescarta, “got its start right here at N.I.H.,” said Dr. Francis S. Collins, the director of the health institutes. It was developed by Kite Pharma using technology licensed from the N.I.H.

Kymriah costs $475,000 for a one-time treatment, and Yescarta goes for $373,000.

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