CAR T-cell Therapy

There’s a breakthrough in the fight against cancer, and the University of Chicago Medicine was the first place in Chicago to offer it. Called CAR T-cell therapy, the treatment supercharges a patient’s white blood cells to seek out and destroy cancer cells. Research at the David and Etta Jonas Center for Cellular Therapy at UChicago Medicine played a key role in the development of this exciting new immunotherapy for certain cancers.  

Select medical centers in the United States, including UChicago Medicine, led clinical trials of this new treatment for leukemia, lymphoma and multiple myeloma. After promising results in adults and children, the FDA approved CAR T-cell therapy for the treatment of specific types of these blood cancers. UChicago Medicine was the first site in the nation to be certified for FDA-approved CAR T-cell therapies for specific blood cancers in both adult and pediatric patients. We offer all CAR T-cell products approved by the FDA.

In addition, our specialists are conducting clinical trials of CAR T-cell therapy and other cellular therapies for other forms of blood cancers as well as for solid tumors such as cervical cancer and non-small cell lung cancer, and autoimmune diseases including lupus, myositis and scleroderma.

What Is CAR T-cell Therapy?

CAR (Chimeric Antigen Receptor) T-cell therapy is an emerging form of cancer immunotherapy, which involves supercharging a patient’s T cells to recognize and attack cancer cells. CAR T-cell therapy is a type of cellular therapy.

During clinical trials of CAR T-cell therapy, 70 to 90 percent of patients with acute lymphoblastic (lymphocytic) leukemia (ALL) went into remission after this treatment. And 40 to 50 percent of patients with non-Hodgkin lymphoma experienced complete remission. While it’s too early to say these patients are cured, the results are encouraging for individuals with hard-to-treat (refractory) or relapsed leukemia or lymphoma.