Some patients’ tumours have either regressed or disappeared completely. A clinical study with another genetic engineering procedure, CRISPR/Cas9 gene scissors, which is intended to treat lymphoma patients, will begin shortly. As part of CAR-T cell therapy, healthy immune cells or so-called T cells are taken from the patient and genetically manipulated in the laboratory. A molecule of the chimeric antigen receptor (CAR) is introduced into the T-cells with the help of a virus. When the cells return, the molecule on the surface of the immune cells recognises the patient’s tumour cells and destroys them. However, this type of therapy is highly complex and limited to a small group of patients at present.
Prof. Dr. Nicolaus Kröger, Director of the Interdisciplinary Clinic for Stem Cell Transplantation at UKE, said: “Cell therapy can be life-saving for patients with advanced lymphomas or acute lymphatic leukaemia. Although we caution against overly high and hasty expectations, results are now available with two-year survival rates of up to 66 per cent. This is a huge step forward for patients who previously had no prospect of successful therapy.”
