The term medical breakthrough can be used in the media to describe a new discovery or technique that improves patient outcomes. However, the concept can be misleading and inaccurate. It takes years of research and funding to develop medical breakthroughs — from initial concepts and suggested findings to groundbreaking therapies, techniques and products. It’s important to know what defines a medical breakthrough when writing health news, so that you can select the appropriate topics for your articles and stay accurate and credible.

When high school freshman Margaret Van Bruggen collapsed from a mysterious illness, her family knew she had a rare, serious condition. Her mitral valve had been damaged by endocarditis, a heart infection caused by bacterial bacteria that can lead to permanent damage and death if left untreated. She needed a new valve, and surgeons could offer her either a bioprosthetic one made of preserved animal tissue or a mechanical valve that would have to be replaced as she grew.

But in a remarkable surgical procedure, Joslin physician John Enders and Brigham and Women’s surgeons used a living donor’s healthy mitral valve to give Margaret a new lease on life. It was the nation’s first three-organ transplant and a medical milestone that has since transformed hearts across the country.

Today, the medical landscape is awash in innovation that has the potential to cure or prevent some of the world’s leading causes of disease. Electronic health records are ubiquitous, MRI scans revolutionize diagnostics and immunotherapy is transforming cancer treatment. And genetic engineering technologies like CRISPR/Cas9 are empowering scientists to insert new DNA into organisms and remove or reduce genetic predispositions to disease.