Scientists behind drug that extends life by decades win 'American Nobel'

Three scientists who helped in developing the cystic fibrosis drug that extends life by decades have won the prestigious Lasker-DeBakey Clinical Medical Research Award with a prize money of $250,000.

Paul Negulescu of Vertex Therapeutics, Dr. Michael Welsh of the University of Iowa, and Jesus Gonzalez of Integro Theranostics, won the bio-medical research award also referred to as “American Nobel” for their breakthrough development of life-saving Trikafta therapy for the genetic disease cystic fibrosis.

In an interview with Live Science, Gonzalez expressed gratitude and said, “It’s very rare to actually have something that goes all the way to patients and is widely available, and to have such a dramatic effect.”

Mayo Clinic defines cystic fibrosis (CF) as a condition that passes down in families, causes damage to the lungs, digestive system and other organs in the body. 

The disease was first discovered in the 1930s and the majority of patients died in childhood.

However, with the development of Trikafta, people with CF can live up to average lifespan if their treatment starts during childhood or adolescence.

Before Trikafta's approval in 2019, almost 50 per cent of the CF patients died before reaching the age 40 but now the average lifespan among patients has increased to 65.