Title:Drug repurposing with AI

After undergoing a combination of seven chemotherapies, Fajgenbaum started searching for an existing medication that could put him into lasting remission. Testing his own blood, he identified that sirolimus—a drug already approved for transplant patients—could also possibly treat his Castleman disease. His doctors prescribed him sirolimus off label, putting Fajgenbaum into remission for 11 years and counting.

“In the time that I’ve been on sirolimus, I married the love of my life, had two incredible kids, and am building the life I once dreamt about from my hospital bed,” he says.

Fajgenbaum started a center at the University of Pennsylvania where he helped to repurpose 14 drugs. He then co-founded Every Cure to save and improve lives by harnessing AI to identify existing drugs that can be used to treat devastating diseases. Every Cure evaluates their AI predictions in the lab and clinical trials when necessary and helps deliver treatments to patients.

“We are building something bigger than any one person—a movement to ensure no drug goes underused and no life is left behind. To see this work highlighted in Time Magazine tells me that people are beginning to understand both what is at stake and what is possible,” says Fajgenbaum.

He’s not only been listed on the 2025 “Time100 Health list,” he’s also presented a TED Talk, and been profiled in The New Yorker and The New York Times. Every Cure also won Newsweek’s inaugural “AI Impact Awards,” highlighting the importance of their drug repurposing programs across a wide range of conditions.

“I’m able to see the impact that our research has on improving lives every day and I get to hear about what patients do with their lives after we’ve helped them,” says Fajgenbaum. “We are just getting started, and the possibilities that lie ahead are incredibly exciting.”