Breakthrough by William Pao review – the drugs do work

From sickle cell to the Covid vaccine – the stories behind medical innovations that have transformed lives

‘A great deal of creativity goes into making new medicines, most of it witnessed and appreciated by only a small handful of people.” This, in part, is what inspired William Pao, an oncologist turned pharmaceutical executive, to write Breakthrough, which tells the stories of some of the most critical discoveries in modern medicine.

Like many others in the field of drug research, Pao has his own story about a family illness. When he was a 13, his father died suddenly from colon cancer – an event experienced by his family as a “cataclysmic shock”. It set his course: “After Dad died, I vowed that I would dedicate my life to making a difference for patients like him,” he writes.