A patient with malignant lymphoma, a form of blood cancer, is currently testing a new treatment at Rennes University Hospital which could well be revolutionary.
The new technique implemented is based on genetic modification, an injection of CAR T-Cells. The therapeutic technique, presented as promising, consists of relying on the patient’s immune defenses in order to fight tumors.
Genetic modification in the United States
The white blood cells, the T lymphocytes, which produce the antibodies, are taken and modified in a laboratory in the United States, so that they are able to recognize and attack cancer cells, before being reinjected into the body of the patient. patient. A clinical trial that required two years of work to become available, given the extremely complex process of genetic modification of T lymphocytes.
The advantages of this genetic modification are that the drugs are “alive”, that is to say that once reinjected the cells will multiply in vivo. In addition, their memory capacity allows them to subsequently resist these cancer cells for months or even years.
Side effects “reversible without sequelae”
However, there are significant side effects. In a press release, the Rennes University Hospital specifies their nature: “high fever, a drop in blood pressure, respiratory discomfort and / or other visceral failures. Neurological side effects are also possible: confusion that can go as far as coma or other manifestations (speech disorders, convulsions, motor deficits, etc.) “. The press release adds that these effects are “generally reversible without sequelae”.
The patient received his injection on August 23 without any new information about his condition since. But this new technique is a symbol of hope for people with blood cancer, of which 35,000 new cases are diagnosed each year. The trial is currently being carried out by three establishments in France (Rennes University Hospital, Saint-Louis Hospital in Paris and Bordeaux University Hospital) and coordinated by Rennes University Hospital. In addition, the Saint-Louis hospital in Paris will launch at the beginning of 2019 an ultra-modern platform for the production of modified cells, thus avoiding having to do it across the Channel.
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