CAR T-cell Therapy

Chimeric antigen receptor (CAR) T cells have hit prime time, with the 2 recent FDA approvals for this class of cell-based therapy.

Reem Karmali, MD, Feinberg School of Medicine, Northwestern University, discusses the impact of chimeric antigen receptor (CAR) T-cell therapy on the treatment of patients with diffuse large B-cell lymphoma (DLBCL).

Sattva Neelapu, MD, associate professor, Department of Lymphoma/Myeloma, Division of Cancer Medicine, at The University of Texas MD Anderson Cancer Center, discusses the updated findings of the ZUMA-1 trial investigating axicabtagene ciloleucel (axi-cel; Yescarta) for patients with refractory aggressive non-Hodgkin lymphoma.

Liso-cel (lisocabtagene maraleucel), formally known as JCAR017, induced an objective response rate of 81% with a complete remission rate of 63% in patients with relapsed/refractory diffuse large B-cell lymphoma.

The CAR T-cell therapy tisagenlecleucel (Kymriah) achieved an overall response rate of 53.1% in adult patients with relapsed/refractory diffuse large B-cell lymphoma.

Treatment with the BCMA-directed CAR T-cell therapy bb2121 induced complete remissions for 56% of patients with relapsed/refractory multiple myeloma.

Noelle Frey, MD, discusses the FDA approvals of CAR T-cell therapies, as well as the bright future of the treatment.

Bijal D. Shah, MD, medical oncology, Moffit Cancer Center, discusses the importance of chimeric antigen receptor (CAR) T-cell therapy for patients with acute lymphoblastic leukemia (ALL).

The FDA has granted the the anti–B-cell maturation antigen (BCMA) chimeric antigen receptor (CAR) T-cell therapy bb2121 a breakthrough therapy designation for previously treated patients with relapsed/refractory multiple myeloma.

Sarah K. Tasian, MD, discusses the success of CAR T-cell therapy, as well as novel agents and immunotherapies that appear promising in the treatment of children with leukemia.

Narendranath Epperla, MBBS, MS, hematologist, The Ohio State University (OSU) Comprehensive Cancer Center, assistant professor in internal medicine, OSU, discusses chimeric antigen receptor (CAR) T-cell therapy for patients with mantle cell lymphoma (MCL).

Leo I. Gordon, MD, discusses promising advances and lingering challenges with novel treatments for patients with hematologic malignancies.

The high rates of cerebral edema seen with JCAR015 in the phase II ROCKET trial were attributed to early and rapid chimeric antigen receptor (CAR)-modified T-cell expansion and a rise in interleukin-15 levels, a finding that could help inform future CAR T-cell usage.