Clinical Trial Tests CAR T-Cell Therapy on Peritoneal Mesothelioma

The National Cancer Institute in Rockville, Maryland, has opened an innovative clinical trial for patients with peritoneal mesothelioma that will explore the safety and effectiveness of a novel CAR T-cell therapy. The phase I trial also is being conducted at Washington University in St. Louis. It is aimed at patients whose disease has relapsed after initial chemotherapy treatment. It involves a laboratory modification of a patient’s T cells — a type of white blood cell — that can help the immune system kill the cancer. CAR T-cell therapy is a form of gene therapy that has been highly successful with blood and bone marrow cancers. The U.S. Food and Drug Administration first approved the therapy in 2017 for pediatric leukemia. “If it works well here, it could change the way [peritoneal mesothelioma] is treated in a relapsed setting,” Dr. Christina Annunziata, clinical director and principal investigator at the National Cancer Institute, told The Mesothelioma Center at Asbestos.com. “I’m excited about this one.” Laboratory Reprograming of T Cells This is a dose-escalation study that uses MCY-M11 as part of the laboratory reprograming. MCY-M11 is a novel drug developed by MaxCyte, a global life-sciences and pharmaceutical company based in Gaithersburg, Maryland. This is the first time the formula has been used in patients with peritoneal mesothelioma, which begins in the lining around the abdomen. Modified T cells will be returned directly to the abdomen and the...
Source: Asbestos and Mesothelioma News - Category: Environmental Health Authors: Source Type: news