The five-year relative cancer survival rate for all cancers combined has reached 70% for people diagnosed between 2016 and 2021 in the United States, according to the American Cancer Society. For Dr. Haley Simpson, MD, PhD, an Assistant Professor of Medicine in the Division of Hematology, this milestone reflects decades of progress in both research and patient care.
“When we see such success like this, it is really a marker of all of the work that has been put into this over decades. In my field, multiple myeloma, the last 15 years have been huge strides of progress in what therapies we have available for patients. This is just evidence of all the hard work that millions of people—scientists, physicians, nurses, the patients themselves—have all been putting in over decades and decades. The thing that matters the most is that it means that people are around to spend time with their families who otherwise wouldn’t have had that chance,” explained Dr. Haley Simpson.
Dr. Simpson’s research focuses on advancing treatment strategies for multiple myeloma, with an emphasis on translating scientific discovery into improved outcomes for patients. Her work complements her clinical care, allowing her to bring emerging therapies and evidence-based innovations directly to the bedside.
Recent findings in multiple myeloma treatment highlight the impact of these advances. “(Last) September, the five-year survival follow-up was published from one of our CAR T-cell therapies for (multiple myeloma), and there are a subset of the patients who were treated, (who) were very sick people who’d been fighting the disease for years and years. A handful of those people are alive without evidence of the cancer at all, even looking at a detailed study in the bone marrow,” said Simpson.
Through her research and clinical expertise, Dr. Simpson continues to play a role in the progress that is extending survival and improving quality of life for patients with cancer.