Genetically modified human immune cells can reduce the risk of disease progression by up to 74 percent in people with a rare blood cancer, according to new trial results presented Monday. AFP.
Ciltacabtagene autoleucel – also known by its trade name Carvykti – was tested in 419 patients with multiple myeloma, whose disease had not responded to the current front-line drug lenalidomide, a chemotherapy drug.
At the annual meeting of the American Society of Clinical Oncology, oncologist Oreofe Odejide said: “Lenalidomide has become the mainstay of care for people with myeloma, but as its use has increased, so have the number of patients with it. whose disease will no longer respond to treatment.”
Ciltacabtagene autoleucel “provides significantly more effective results than current options for patients” and “can be safely used earlier in the treatment phase,” added Odijide, an expert who was not part of the research.
Multiple myeloma affects a type of white blood cell called plasma cells and can severely damage bones, kidneys, and immune health.
According to the Cleveland Clinic, it affects about seven out of 100,000 people in the United States each year. There is currently no cure for the disease, but progression can be halted for a long time.
The risk of the disease increases with age, more men are affected than women, and black people are at higher risk than other races.
However, not everyone needs immediate treatment and it can be monitored if it’s progressing slowly.
In the new clinical trial, half of the patients were randomly assigned to ciltacabtagene autoleucel, while the other half received a cocktail of drugs that represented the current standard of care, including chemotherapy and steroids.
“After a median follow-up of 16 months, researchers found that ciltacabtagene autoleucel reduced the risk of disease progression by 74 percent compared with standard-of-care treatment,” a press statement said.
Ciltacabtagene is a type of autoleucel chimeric antigen receptor (CAR) T-cell therapy, a new form of treatment.
CAR T-cell therapy involves removing a patient’s disease-fighting T cells, and genetically engineering them in the laboratory so that they have specific proteins known as receptors, which once returned to the body. They come in, find cancer cells and destroy them.
Almost all patients in both groups experienced serious to life-threatening adverse events, including infections and low blood cell counts.
ciltacabtagene autoleucel Three-quarters of patients developed cytokine release syndrome, in which the immune system is sent into overdrive. It can affect multiple organs and cause death.
About 5% of ciltacabtagene autoleucel patients developed immune effector cell-associated neurotoxicity syndrome (ICANS), which affects a person’s nervous system.
In the next step, the researchers said they will follow the participants to determine long-term effects and impact on quality of life.