Shifting perspectives from doctor to patient. During his long career as a pediatric oncologist and cancer researcher, William Woods thought highly of the FDA’s work evaluating and approving new cancer drugs.
But his opinion of the agency changed when he was diagnosed with amyotrophic lateral sclerosis, a progressive disease that damages nerves in the brain and spinal cord. The FDA’s Office of Neuroscience, which oversees the development of new ALS drugs in the U.S., “has repeatedly failed to take aggressive steps to greenlight these experimental therapies,” Woods wrote in his First Opinion.
This week on the “First Opinion Podcast,” Woods talks about living with ALS, and watching what he sees as the glacial pace of approving an experimental ALS drug called AMX0035. Listen Now "Yes, there are times when it's difficult. Compared to other individuals with ALS, since my disease is progressing relatively slowly, and I'm older, I've had an incredibly fulfilling life. It probably doesn't affect me as much as other people," Woods said. "But yes, there are times when I'm looking at this and saying, this is scary as anything." Like what you hear? Subscribe to The First Opinion Podcast on your favorite platform. New episodes are released every Wednesday morning. | 
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