Dr Patel on Data for Orca-T With RIC in Hematologic Malignancies

“Patients who received Orca-T in comparison [to those who received PTCy] exhibited increased OS, RFS, and decreased NRM.”

Sagar S. Patel, MD, an associate professor in the Transplant and Cellular Therapy Program and director of communications and media relationships in the Division of Hematology both for Huntsman Cancer Institute, discussed efficacy data for Orca-T in patients with hematologic malignancies from a retrospective analysis that was presented at the 2026 Transplantation and Cellular Therapy Meetings.

Patel began by outlining noteworthy design features of the analysis, specifically how patients who received Orca-T (n = 53) during a phase 1 trial (NCT05088356) were compared with those in a retrospective registry cohort who received post-transplant cyclophosphamide (PTCy; n = 587). The analysis specifically compared the efficacy of each treatment at both 1 and 2 years following hematopoietic stem cell transplantation (HSCT).

Moreover, patients included in the analysis who received PTCy were from the Center for International Blood and Marrow Transplant Research registry and had already received conventional allogeneic HSCT.

Data from the analysis showed that patients in the Orca-T group experienced 1- and 2-year overall survival (OS) rates of 88% and 84%, respectively, compared with respective rates of 72% and 61% for the PTCy group (P = .034). Relapse-free survival (RFS) rates at 1 and 2 years following HSCT were 82% and 79%, respectively for the Orca-T group vs 61% and 53%, respectively, for the PTCy group (P = .016). Eight percent and 12%, respectively, were the 1- and 2-year non-relapse mortality (NRM) for the Orca-T compared with respective rates of 16% and 17% in the PTCy group (P = .313).

However, Patel underscored the difference in moderate to severe chronic graft-vs-host disease (cGVHD) between the two groups, noting how rates of moderate to severe cGVHD were lower in the PTCy group. Ultimately, Patel reassured by noting on the benefits of Orca-T compared with PTCy in OS, RFS, and NRM.