Adam Feuerstein is a senior writer and biotech columnist, reporting on the crossroads of drug development, business, Wall Street, and biotechnology. He is also a co-host of the weekly biotech podcast The Readout Loud and author of the newsletter Adam’s Biotech Scorecard. You can reach Adam on Signal at stataf.54.

The Food and Drug Administration on Thursday approved an oral treatment for advanced multiple myeloma made by Bristol Myers Squibb, marking the debut of a new class of medicine for the blood cancer and the first drug cleared by U.S. regulators using a more sensitive measure of remission. 

The Bristol drug, iberdomide, will be sold under the brand name Zenbexus. It will be used in combination with two other drugs, Darzalex and dexamethasone, to treat patients with multiple myeloma who have received at least one prior line of therapy. 

“With the Zenbexus approval, Bristol is the first company to bring a novel class of drugs to patients with multiple myeloma, opening venues for many more potential combinations,” said Cristian Massacesi, Bristol’s chief medical officer, in an interview with STAT ahead of the approval announcement.