Novartis transforms CML treatment with Gleevec (2001)
The Food and Drug Administration approved Gleevec (imatinib), the first targeted therapy for chronic myeloid leukemia, developed by Novartis researcher Brian Druker. The drug turned CML from a near-certain death sentence into a manageable chronic condition, achieving complete remission in the majority of patients.
Gleevec became a $4.7 billion-per-year blockbuster and established Novartis as the dominant player in CML treatment.
Gleevec spawned an entire class of tyrosine kinase inhibitors, but many patients eventually developed resistance. Novartis stayed ahead with next-generation drugs, most recently Scemblix (2021), which targets resistant forms of the disease.
TERN-701 is designed to challenge the treatment paradigm that Novartis has controlled for 25 years. The drug targets the same protein pocket as Scemblix but aims for better efficacy against resistant mutations — the same evolutionary dynamic that drove each previous generation of CML drugs.