Frederick Martin Baron, one of America’s most prominent trial lawyers, obtained an experimental cancer-fighting drug through the Mayo Clinic working with the Food and Drug Administration to treat his blood cancer after pleas by former president Bill Clinton and athlete Lance Armstrong.

Biogen Idec Inc. had refused to give the drug, called Tysabri, a treatment that is approved for people with multiple sclerosis or Crohn’s disease, but is in the early clinical trial stage for multiple myeloma.

The prominent trial lawyer known for representing plaintiffs claiming toxic and chemical exposure has been an active figure in politics as a fund-raiser for the Democratic Party and fellow trial lawyer, Sen. John Edwards.

Baron’s son, Andrew Baron disclosed information about his father’s condition – multiple myeloma, a form of blood cancer – on his personal blog in the form of an open letter to the head of the company that manufactures the drug. He said prominent figures as former President Bill Clinton, Sens. Ted Kennedy and John Kerry, and cyclist Lance Armstrong have asked the company to grant permission to treat Fred Baron with the drug, but Biogen has maintained that the risks of giving him special permission to use the drug are too great.

The Food and Drug Administration working with the Mayo Clinic in Rochester, where the lawyer is being treated, authorised the drug company to give Tysabri to Baron under a rule for compassion use.

The drug was removed from the market after three patients taking the drug developed a rare brain infection. The company later returned the drug to the market but with strict safety guidelines.