“Changes have been announced for years, but nothing changes” is the motto of the short-sighted (or lazy) who does not inform himself but wants to pass judgment. Social fauna, which exploits a “defect” in all of us: we do not always realize how quickly medicine is progressing. In 2024 alone, numerous medical advances have changed the treatment outlook for millions of patients.
From new drugs against obesity to innovative therapies for cancer, it was a turning point for scientific research. Without going into too much detail, I will do a very quick recap, since the readers of Futuro Prossimo are not lazy, and will delve deeper.
Beyond Obesity: The GLP-1 Revolution
Drugs known as GLP-1 analogues have been transforming diabetes treatment for decades. In 2024, the U.S. Food and Drug Administration approved the semagglutide, Manufactured by Novo Nordisk (eye at prices however!), to reduce the risk of heart attacks and strokes.
New studies have also shown its effectiveness in treating heart failure and knee arthritis pain. tyrezepatide Eli Lilly's, on the other hand, has been approved to treat sleep apnea.
The most anticipated medical advances, however, also concern several pharmaceutical companies, including Eli Lilly, Pfizer, Viking Therapeutics e Structure Therapeutics, are working to develop oral versions of these drugs. Currently, these are difficult-to-produce injections containing protein fragments called peptides. Pill versions could be much easier to produce. and make these drugs accessible to even more people.
New horizons in HIV prevention
The biggest novelty in this field concerns the use of a combined pill called Truvada, produced by Gilead Sciences and taken daily
A new drug of Gilead, lenacapavir, has proven even more effective, partly because it is long-acting: the medicine is given by injection just twice a year.
A record year for new drugs
Until December 20th, the FDA Blazer has approved 50 new medicines. While the number is 9% lower than in 2023, it is still impressive. In the 2000s, the annual count never exceeded 36. Among the most significant changes:
- Cobenfy di Bristol Myers Squibb: represents the first new class of treatments for schizophrenia in decades;
- Winrevair di Merck: a drug to treat pulmonary arterial hypertension;
- Duvyzat: approved for the treatment of Duchenne muscular dystrophy in certain patients.
Progress also in the fight against cancer
Enhertu, a drug already used to treat patients with HER2-positive breast cancer, has been shown to be effective even when HER2 levels were very low. Tagrisso, used in non-small cell lung cancer with EGFR mutation, has shown promising results even in patients with an earlier stage of the disease.
Medical advances in prevention are equally important. In Scotland, January results showed that the HPV vaccine Not only has it dramatically reduced cervical cancer rates, but for children vaccinated at age 12-13 there have been no cases of cervical cancer since the program began in 2008.
Medical Advances, and Also the Risk of Regressions: The Future to Watch
La CAR-T therapy, in which white blood cells are genetically modified, is now being used to treat autoimmune diseases such as lupusGenetically modified pig organs are being implanted into people in an effort to expand the availability of organs for transplant.
Electrical stimulation to help restore some function in people with spinal cord injuries has made great strides. These are just a few of the things to watch for in 2025. Watch out!
Paradoxically, despite the remarkable medical progress, it is the health system that faces the most significant challenges between cost control, the need to make new discoveries accessible to those who need them and the risks of "injustices automate“. the pace of innovation is real and rapid, as the examples discussed demonstrate: that of our humanity, unfortunately, continues to chase.
