Shawn Ryan Show

#240 Dr. David Fajgenbaum - Can AI Find Cures to Rare Diseases Using Existing Medicine?

11 snips
Sep 29, 2025
Dr. David Fajgenbaum, a physician-scientist from UPenn and co-founder of EveryCure, shares his remarkable journey battling Castleman disease. He emphasizes the challenges of repurposing generic drugs and how existing medicines can offer hope for rare diseases. Fajgenbaum discusses his breakthrough with sirolimus, which led to his remission. He also reveals how AI is transforming drug repurposing, helping to match existing treatments with unmet medical needs. His mission is to inspire change in patient-driven research and push for effective solutions.
Ask episode
AI Snips
Chapters
Books
Transcript
Episode notes
INSIGHT

Generic Drugs Are Underinvestigated

  • About 80% of approved drugs are generic, so companies lack profit motive to find new uses.
  • That gap creates opportunities where nonprofits or researchers must advance repurposing work.
ADVICE

Be Relentless With Doctors

  • If a local doctor dismisses a potential treatment, be relentless and seek a second opinion from disease experts.
  • Bring research and patient-organization recommendations to clinicians to advance off-label options.
ADVICE

Find Disease Experts Fast

  • Start with a Google search for your disease and add 'disease organization' to find specialized patient groups.
  • Contact those organizations; they often know the best doctors and treatment leads.
Get the Snipd Podcast app to discover more snips from this episode
Get the app