A U.S. study shows a new potential therapy for the disease chronic lymphocytic leukemia. A cancer fighting therapy was discovered to be helpful in creating immune cells in patients which can wipe out the disease.
The Abramson Cancer Center and Perelman School of Medicine of the University of Pennsylvania developed the method called CTL019 which was reported to provide long-term results to the 14 initial patients.
Among the subjects of the study, 57% or eight of the adults displayed positive results and responded to the therapy. Four of the patients are now undergoing continuing remission while the other four are showing partial response to the treatment.
Penn's department of pathology and laboratory medicine professor of immunotherapy Carl June proudly reported the accomplishments they made in their study.
"Our tests of patients who experienced complete remissions showed that the modified cells remain in patients' bodies for years after their infusions, with no sign of cancerous or normal B cells," June stated.
"This suggests that at least some of the CTL019 cells retain their ability to hunt for cancerous cells for long periods of time," June added.
The first patient who obtained the treatment was able to experience a cancer free life for five years. Two of the patients did not have their cancer return for four and a half years. However, the cancer of the fourth subject returned after 21 months. The patient died due to an infection after a surgery which was not related to leukemia.
The researchers claim that the approach may revolutionize oncology someday by putting an end to the disadvantageous and toxic chemotherapy. The method works by engineering immune cells or T-cells to better search and kill cancer cells. The chimeric antigen receptor (CAR) protein aims for the CD19 protein that is on the surface of the B cells which are cancerous.
The cancer can no longer evade the defences of the body which is what usually happens.
