The Price of Remission
May 09, 2025 at 11:02PMMultiple myeloma is a painful blood cancer that attacks bone and leaves “distinctive holes in its wake.” You may remember thalidomide, the drug prescribed for morning sickness in the ’50s and ’60s until researchers discovered its link to birth defects. Revlimid is a less potent form; it has shown promise as a therapy for multiple myeloma by starving cancer cells of the blood supply needed to grow. Celgene, its manufacturer, pays 25 cents to make each capsule, a price that has never increased in the decades since the drug was put into service to fight cancer. So why, then, does Revlimid sell for $1000 a pill today? Why has Celgene increased the price of Revlimid 26 times since the drug received FDA approval in 2006? Reporter David Armstrong—who is fighting his own battle with the disease—surveys the history of Revlimid as a therapy and investigates the corporate greed that drove Celgene to repeatedly hike the drug’s price, enriching Celgene executives at the expense of cancer patients and insurance companies in the US.
For decades, I’ve reported on outrageous health care costs in the U.S. and the burden they place on patients. I’ve revealed the tactics used by drug companies to drive sales and keep the price of their products high.
Even with my experience, the cost of Revlimid stood out. When I started taking the drug, I’d look at the smooth, cylindrical capsule in my hand and consider the fact I was about to swallow something that costs about the same as a new iPhone. A month’s supply, which arrives in an ordinary, orange-tinged plastic bottle, is the same price as a new Nissan Versa.
The price increases added to the burden faced by many patients. In online groups, patients use words like “ridiculous,” “ugly” and “killer” when talking about the financial pain they have experienced related to the high costs associated with Revlimid. Some have taken out mortgages, raided retirement funds or cut back on everyday expenses like groceries to pay for Revlimid. Others have found overseas suppliers who ship the drug for pennies on the dollar, although doctors caution there’s no way to guarantee quality. Some just decide not to take the drug.
By increasing the price of Revlimid, Celgene executives in several instances boosted their pay. That’s because bonuses were tied to meeting revenue and earnings targets. In some years, executives would not have hit those targets without the Revlimid price increases, a congressional investigation later found.
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from Longreads https://longreads.com/2025/05/09/the-price-of-remission/
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