In May 2018, Tyler Goodwin underwent CAR T-cell therapy for follicular non-Hodgkin lymphoma (NHL). While he was having preparatory chemotherapy for the procedure, a surprise visitor to his hospital bedside provided a powerful reminder of why this promising new cancer treatment was so important to him. “It was my daughter Theresa, all made up for … Read more
After undergoing a promising new treatment for acute lymphoblastic leukemia (ALL), Cole Malone is back to doing what he loves: playing on a flag football team with his twin brother, Michael. Cole and Michael Malone, who are 14, already know plenty about teamwork. Michael served as a perfect-match donor when Cole underwent a stem cell … Read more
In early 2018, Sandra Linberg received an infusion of CAR T cells only a few months after the therapy was approved for treating her type of cancer. After only a month, her lymphoma had completely disappeared – she was in a complete remission. “Those little warrior cells took care of it,” declared Linberg, who has continued … Read more
A year ago, Kelly Lamphere’s multiple myeloma was not responding to treatment, and her legs were so weakened by the cancer in her bones that she relied on a wheelchair and a walker. Today, because of CAR T-cell therapy, Lamphere’s disease is under control—and she can walk unaided again.
CAR T-cell therapy—a form of immunotherapy that uses genetically engineered T cells to intensify the immune system’s response to cancer—represents one of the biggest advances against cancer in recent years.
CAR T-cell therapy uses specially altered T cells — which are part of the body’s immune system — to fight cancer.
Boston-based researchers hope to optimize CAR T-cell therapies to target DIPG, aggressive and difficult-to-treat brain tumors, and other tough-to-treat cancers.
Gene therapy is a way of treating or preventing disease by altering the genetic instructions within an individual’s cells.
CAR T-cell therapy is a form of immunotherapy that uses specially modified T cells — part of the body’s defense system against disease — to attack cancer. It involves collecting T cells from a patient and genetically modifying them to recognize cancer cells. Reinfused into the patient, CAR T cells can spark a potent immune … Read more
“Living” drugs consist of fully functional cells that have been selected and often modified to treat specific diseases, such as cancer. CAR T-cell therapy and therapeutic vaccines fall into this category.
What does “refractory” mean medically? The word “refractory” in general use means stubborn or intractable, and in medicine it is specifically applied to disease that does not respond to treatment. Refractory cancer refers to cancer that may be resistant at the beginning of treatment, or becomes resistant during treatment. “We would consider disease refractory if … Read more
One of the most exciting new cancer treatments, CAR T-cell therapy takes its complicated name, in part, from a fire-breathing monster in an ancient Greek myth. CAR is an acronym for “chimeric antigen receptor,” referring to genetically engineered molecules manufactured in a laboratory, inserted into the genetic material of immune T cells that have been removed from … Read more
There are many types of gene therapy, but all of them involve adding to or modifying the genetic program in a person – his or her DNA blueprint that provides instructions for building and operating the body. Gene therapy technology has been developed over several decades and has been successfully used to correct rare blood … Read more
CAR T-cell therapy is a cancer treatment in which a patient’s immune system T cells are genetically modified to mount a more effective attack on cancer. As of May 2018, CAR T-cell therapy has been approved by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration as standard therapy for some adult patients with aggressive non-Hodgkin lymphoma that has relapsed after … Read more
In 1947, when Dana-Farber Cancer Institute founder Sidney Farber, MD, set out to find a drug treatment for childhood leukemia, cancer treatment took two forms – surgery to cut out cancerous masses, and radiation therapy to burn them out. Cancers that couldn’t be removed or irradiated – either because of their position in the body, because … Read more
CAR T-cell therapy, like all forms of cancer immunotherapy, seeks to sharpen and strengthen the immune system’s inherent cancer-fighting powers. It involves treating patients with modified versions of their own immune system T cells — white blood cells that help protect the body from disease. CAR T-cell therapy has been approved by the U.S. Food … Read more
A drug called Axicabtagene ciloleucel (KTE-C19) has become the first chimeric antigen receptor (CAR) T-cell therapy approved to treat a form of cancer in adults, the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) announced today. The decision means the drug, known as Yescarta, can now be used for some adults with refractory aggressive non-Hodgkin lymphoma (NHL). The FDA ruling in … Read more
Non-Hodgkin lymphoma is one of the two major subtypes of lymphoma, and about 72,000 people will be diagnosed with this cancer by the end of 2017, according to the American Cancer Society. There are more than 50 types of non-Hodgkin lymphoma – including B-cell and T-cell lymphomas, as well as fast-growing and slow-growing lymphomas. There … Read more
Judy Wilkins tried four different chemotherapy regiments over 18 grueling months to try to put her lymphoma into remission. Her team never could. But thanks to CAR T-cell therapy, an emerging immunotherapy treatment that is showing great promise in clinical trials nationwide, Wilkins is cancer-free. CAR (Chimeric Antigen Receptor) T-cell therapy is a form of cellular … Read more
Donor stem cell transplants and other cellular therapies are treatment approaches that harness the immune system to fight cancer using cells from the patient or from healthy donors. What are stem cell transplants? Stem cell transplants are used to treat blood-related cancers such as leukemia, lymphoma, and multiple myeloma, as well as certain non-cancerous blood … Read more