Cancer-Fighting Cells Engineered Inside Patients for First Time

In a pair of groundbreaking studies, scientists have engineered cancer-fighting cells inside patients' bodies for the first time, eliminating the need for a traditional laboratory process. This innovative approach was presented at the American Society of Hematology's annual meeting and involves modifying a patient's T-cells in vivo using a virus to add a chimeric antigen receptor, or CAR.

In the first trial conducted in July, four patients with multiple myeloma had their T-cells engineered inside their bodies, resulting in two patients appearing to be cured, with no detectable cancer cells in their bone marrow.

The other two patients showed signs of remission after five months. Notably, the side effects experienced by these patients were less severe than those typically associated with the lab-based CAR T-cell method, such as flu-like symptoms.

In the second trial, another four patients with previously untreatable multiple myeloma also had no detectable cancer cells one month after treatment, with one patient maintaining this status five months later.

This method, if standardized, could reduce treatment costs, which currently can reach hundreds of thousands of dollars, and significantly shorten the time required for therapy. As hematologist Joy Ho of the Royal Prince Alfred Hospital stated, this advancement gives a glimpse into the future of cancer treatment.

Researchers emphasize that while the safety profile needs further evaluation, this in vivo CAR-T therapy represents a promising new avenue in cancer treatment.