Cancer has emerged as one of the biggest challenge for India. However, a new treatment has raised hopes after first patient has been declared “cancer-free” using India’s CAR-T cell therapy.
The patient, Dr (Col) VK Gupta, a Delhi-based gastroenterologist, has been declared cancer-free by taking the treatment that is known to genetically reengineer a patient’s immune system to fight against cancer.
CAR-T, short for chimeric antigen receptor T-cell therapy, has been making waves in the medical community for its success in treating certain blood cancers.
At the forefront of this scientific exploration is the Indian research team led by Alka Dwivedi. Their groundbreaking work focuses on modifying CAR-T cells to carry a more human-like antibody, a strategy aimed at evading immune system attacks.
The therapy involves the extraction of T cells, a type of immune system cell, from a patient’s blood. In the laboratory, these T cells undergo a transformative process.
The gene for a special receptor known as a chimeric antigen receptor (CAR) is introduced to the T cells. This receptor binds specifically to a protein called CD19, which is often overproduced on the surface of leukemia and lymphoma cells.
The uniqueness of NexCAR19 lies in its “humanised” design, tailored to mimic the human immune system more closely. This modification aims to enhance the therapy’s effectiveness while minimising the risk of immune system rejection. However, the journey to perfecting NexCAR19 was not without its challenges.
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