Acute myeloid leukemia (AML) cells floating among other cells (isometric view 3d illustration). Researchers have developed an approach to CAR T-cell therapy that can potentially treat nearly any blood cancer, including AML. Photo Credit: iStock
Health IndiaAn Effective Cancer Therapy for a Fraction of the Cost!
A team of researchers has successfully designed a type of immunotherapy in India tailored to the needs of its population facing cancer for a tenth of the usual cost.
“This is like a dream come true and an incredible win for the patients in [India],” exclaims Dr. Rahul Purwar, founder and CEO of ImmunoACT, which funded the trial and will be manufacturing actalycabtagene autoleucel, or NexCAR19, and bringing it to market. “Now our patients in India and [other] countries with limited resources will have access to this lifesaving drug at an affordable cost.”
CAR-T cell therapy is a type of immunotherapy in which a person’s T cells are modified in a laboratory to kill cancer cells selectively. It is used to treat blood cancers like leukaemia and lymphoma. In October 2023, the effective CAR-T cell therapy called NexCAR19 was approved by India’s Central Drugs Standard Control Organization following two small clinical trials on 64 people with advanced lymphoma or leukaemia – 67% of patients had a notable decrease in the extent of their cancer; cancer disappeared entirely in about half. Designed and manufactured in India at a reasonable cost – about a tenth – the CAR-T cell therapy will meet patients’ needs in the country’s health care system. Indeed, an infusion of CAR-T cell therapy costs some $400,000 in the United States, while NexCAR19 should cost around $50,000. Manufactured in a facility built in Mumbai, NexCAR19 could treat 1,200 patients per year.
