Three Drugs And A Mission

Triplet therapy, which involves a combination of three drugs, is emerging as an option to manage cancers that are resistant to conventional methods

- RISHITA KHANNA @ Bengaluru

When standard cancer treatments begin to fail, especially in aggressive or advanced stages, oncologists are increasingly turning to a newer strategy known as 'triplet therapy'. Far from being just a combination of three drugs, this approach is designed to hit cancer from multiple angles at once — disrupting its growth, cutting off its support systems, and awakening the body's own immune response. Triplet therapy, doctors say, is now emerging as a powerful option for cancers that were once considered extremely difficult to manage, such as metastatic prostate cancer and advanced head and neck cancers.

Triplet therapy works on the principle that cancer is not a static disease. It evolves, adapts, and finds new ways to bypass single-line or even double-line treatments. By using three agents, often from different therapeutic classes like chemotherapy, targeted therapy, and immunotherapy — doctors can slow down or stall this progression. Each component is chosen not just for its individual effect, but for how well it complements the others. This approach is proving particularly useful in cancers that have grown resistant to conventional methods.