Author : Dr. Rahul Bhargava , Director at Fortis Memorial Research Institute, Gurgaon
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Since the 1950s, blood cancer treatments have seen many revolutions aimed at enhancing the survival rate of cancer patients. From introducing chemotherapy to the groundbreaking development of bone marrow transplantation, therapeutic interventions have evolved significantly, improving the quality of life for countless individuals.
CAR T-Cell Therapy: A Milestone Against Cancer Relapse
Despite the breakthroughs in cancer treatment, a formidable challenge persists: the relapse of blood cancer, especially in patients with acute lymphoid leukaemia (ALL), diffuse large B-cell lymphoma (DLBCL) and multiple myeloma.
By relapse, I mean recurrence of the blood cancer after the treatment. It is one of the most common problems I have seen in my 23 years of experience, highlighting the importance of therapeutic strategies to overcome this problem.
In such situations, a revolutionary treatment approach, CAR T-cell therapy, has proven its effectiveness.
While CAR T-cell therapy has been a part of the medical treatment procedure since its approval in 2017, its full potential as a cancer treatment remains unfamiliar to many.
CAR T-cell: Manipulating T-cell to fight cancer cells
Our blood has three significant components: RBC, WBC, and platelets. One component of WBC is T-lymphocytes. These T-lymphocytes are responsible for the body’s immune defence, identifying and eliminating foreign invaders known as antigens.
In CAR T-cell therapy, we genetically manipulate your T-cells so that they can recognise cancer cells in your body and kill them. There is no donor, and your immune system will cure cancer. Let me simplify the procedure.
- Talking about the administration, first, we extract your blood.
- Then, in the lab, using a virus as a vector, constructs are made to manipulate the T-cells to recognise cancer cells present in the body.
- These constructs are surface proteins known as chimeric antigen receptors or CARs.
- Then, these manipulated T cells are cryopreserved in blood banks before injecting into the blood cancer patients.
- Since these cells are derived from the patient’s blood, they integrate rapidly, usually within 30 to 40 minutes, and begin performing their function of targeting and killing cancer cells within 6 hours.
CAR T-Cells: A Game-Changer in Cancer Cure
With recent medical advances, CAR T-cell therapy is available at India's leading cancer hospitals for the treatment of cancer patients. We are proud to announce that Fortis Memorial Research Center, Gurgaon, offers this advanced therapy, setting a new benchmark for cancer care in India.
We have many success stories about cancer patients who couldn’t be cured with chemotherapy, and then CAR T-cell therapy proved beneficial to them. Also, you need not worry about any hair fall, nausea, vomiting or other complications. It’s just a simple blood transfusion.
Still, we take some additional precautions by monitoring the patient for 3-4 days for symptoms such as:
- Cytokine release syndrome such as shivering, blood pressure dropping
- Immune cell-associated neurotoxicity syndrome (ICANS)
Considering the exceptional benefits of CAR T-cell therapy, these symptoms can be managed easily.
One of the most striking aspects of CAR T-cell therapy is its personalised nature. We modify the T-cells of cancer patients to target their specific cancerous cells, making the treatment highly individualised. With each passing day, the modified T-cell becomes more efficacious and less toxic.
I am delighted to share that the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) has approved six CAR T-cell therapies since 2017, and by the time you read this, the FDA may have approved CAR T-cell therapy for the treatments of other cancers as well.
CAR T-cell Therapy Cost in India
Now, whenever I talk about the exceptional benefits of this revolutionary CAR T cell therapy, people often get concerned about the expenses involved in this treatment.
While the high cost of CAR T-cell therapy is undoubtedly a hurdle, it’s incredibly inspiring to witness India’s progress in making this evolutionary treatment available for cancer patients.
The cost of a generic CAR T-cell therapy in India is around 40,000 USD. That might seem expensive, but it’s actually one-tenth of the cost of CAR T-cell therapy in many other Western countries.
Of course, we are continuously looking forward to reducing the preparation cost while enhancing efficiency and efficacy, making the world a better place for cancer patients.
So, my suggestion for cancer patients who can’t recover from chemotherapy is to know every detail of CAR T-cell therapy and embrace it as one of the revolutionary treatment options.
Conclusion
CAR T-cell therapy is safe and, of course, based on easy administration. We have trained doctors in India who have the expertise to administer CAR T-cell therapy in cancer treatment and manage any associated post-therapeutic symptoms.
With cancer being the third leading cause of death in our country, we aim to extend the survival of cancer patients with CAR T-cell therapy.
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