Scientists from the Fred Hutchinson Cancer Research Center presented the results of a new method of treating leukemia. Therapy with the use of T lymphocytes gave surprisingly good results – as many as 27 out of 29 patients in the study had complete remission.
In 2013, research on a new treatment for acute leukemia began at the Fred Hutchinson Cancer Research Center. The team led by Dr. Stan Riddell enrolled 29 patients with lymphoblastic leukemia for testing. Patients were included in the study because their disease was resistant to other treatments. The expected survival time for most of them did not exceed a few months.
A new treatment for leukemia is based on immunotherapy, which is changes in the immune system to fight the disease on its own. The team modified the patients’ T cells through genetic engineering and attached CAR molecules to them that allow them to recognize cancer cells. The extraordinary advantage of this method of treatment is the fact that T lymphocytes multiply in the patient’s body, so the therapy does not need to be repeated – it is enough to administer the changed cells.
Last week, Dr. Riddell presented the results of the research at the Association for the Advancement of Science in Washington meeting. The results of the new method are stunning. Less than three years after the start of therapy, not only are all patients alive, but 27 of them have completely remitted – there are no traces of the disease. Another arm of the study tested the therapy in a group of 30 people with non-Hodgkin’s lymphoma. Remission (partial or complete) was observed in 19 of them.
Dr. Riddell’s team is constantly modifying the therapy. The main purpose of the changes is to increase its effectiveness and reduce side effects – including fever and a large drop in blood pressure. At the same time, laboratories are developing a new generation of modified T-lymphocytes. It is still unclear when the therapy will be widely used.
Based on: https://www.fredhutch.org