Quell Therapeutics and AstraZeneca Advance CAR-Treg Therapy for Type 1 Diabetes

AbbVie’s ELAHERE® Approved in the EU for Platinum-Resistant Ovarian Cancer

AstraZeneca’s Tagrisso Recommended for Approval in EU for Unresectable EGFR-Mutated NSCLC

Foundation Medicine Receives FDA Approval for FoundationOne®Liquid CDx as a Companion Diagnostic for TEPMETKO® in NSCLC

Exact Sciences Partners with Carlos Ponce to Boost Colorectal Cancer Awareness in the Hispanic Community

Merck Receives Positive CHMP Opinion for KEYTRUDA® in Combination Therapy for First-Line Treatment of Non-Epithelioid Mesothelioma

Australia Launches Genomics Australia to Lead Advances in Genomic Medicine

Sidra Medicine Unveils Masterclasses Ahead of PMFG 2024 Summit

FDA Approves Revuforj® as First Menin Inhibitor for Acute Leukemia with KMT2A Translocation

CHMP Recommends Approval of Opdivo® Plus Yervoy® for First-Line Treatment of MSI-H/dMMR Metastatic Colorectal Cancer

ADDF Invests $1.18M to Standardize p-tau217 Blood Tests for Alzheimer’s Diagnosis

GSK Reports Positive Interim Results for DREAMM-7 Trial of Blenrep in Multiple Myeloma

Molbio Diagnostics Invests $30 Million in OptraSCAN to Revolutionize Digital Pathology

BioNTech Acquires Chinese Oncology Firm Biotheus for $950M

The Care and Protection of Children Trust

CPCT Launches Groundbreaking Initiative to Provide Lifelong Free Treatment for Children with Spinal Muscular Atrophy (SMA) in Karnataka

Home
/
insight
/
details

What is CAR-T cell therapy?

NextEdge Admin

05 Sep 2023

5 min 12 sec

CAR-T cell therapy, short for Chimeric Antigen Receptor T-cell therapy, is a revolutionary form of immunotherapy that has gained significant attention in recent years for its remarkable success in treating certain types of cancer, particularly blood cancers. This cutting-edge treatment involves harnessing the power of the patient’s immune system to target and destroy cancer cells, offering
new hope for individuals with previously untreatable or advanced cancers The basic premise of CAR-T cell therapy revolves around genetically engineering a patient’s own T cells, a type of immune cell, to express a chimeric antigen receptor (CAR) on their surface. This CAR is designed to specifically recognize and bind to a particular protein or antigen present on the surface of cancer cells. Once the T cells are modified to express this CAR, they become highly efficient cancer-killing machines.

Here’s a more detailed breakdown of how CAR-T cell therapy works:

Collection of T Cells: The process begins by extracting T cells from the patient’s blood through a procedure called leukapheresis. This collected sample contains the patient’s immune cells, including T cells.
Genetic Engineering: In a laboratory setting, the patient’s T cells are then genetically modified to express the CAR on their surface. This is typically done using viral vectors, which are harmless viruses that can deliver the genetic material encoding the CAR into the T cells. The CAR is designed to target a specific antigen found on the surface of
cancer cells.
Expansion and Activation: The engineered CAR-T cells are cultured and expanded in large quantities to create a sufficient dose for treatment. During this process, they are also activated to enhance their anti-cancer properties.
Infusion: Once an adequate number of CAR-T cells are generated, they are infused back into the patient’s bloodstream. This is typically a one-time treatment and is often referred to as a “living drug” because the modified T cells can persist in the body for an extended period.
Targeting Cancer Cells: Once in the patient’s body, the CAR-T cells circulate and seek out cancer cells that express the specific antigen recognized by their CAR. When a CAR-T cell encounters a cancer cell, it binds to the cancer cell’s surface, initiating a cascade of events that leads to the destruction of the cancer cell.
Eradication of Cancer: CAR-T cells can rapidly multiply and continue to target cancer cells. This process can result in the eradication of cancer cells throughout the body, even in cases where traditional treatments have failed.

CAR-T cell therapy has demonstrated remarkable success in treating certain types of blood cancers, particularly B-cell lymphomas and leukemias. One of the most well-known CAR-T therapies is Kymriah, which targets CD19-positive cancer cells and has been approved for the treatment of relapsed or refractory acute lymphoblastic leukemia (ALL) and diffuse large B-cell
lymphoma (DLBCL). Despite its promise, CAR-T cell therapy is not without challenges and potential side effects. Cytokine Release Syndrome (CRS) and neurotoxicity are two common side effects that can occur as a result of the immune system’s response to the CAR-T cells. These side effects can range from mild to severe and require careful management.

Related Tags

CAR-T

therapy

Machine learning and missense mutation

Scope of precision medicine in rare diseases and creation of orphan drugs

Top Reviews

No reviews yet