I don't think this necessarily implies a lack of faith in progress. If 1 out of 10 new drugs is a miracle drug, that means it's wise not to place faith in any one trial drug, while still being hopeful that advances are being made overall.
berberous says " If 1 out of 10 new drugs is a miracle drug"
I think this is a very high estimate, possibly off by 4 orders of magnitude or more.
And seeing people cling to false hope in their last days of life is equally as depressing.