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Abstract
Evaluation of: Porter DL, Levine BL, Kalos M et al. Chimeric antigen receptor-modified T cells in chronic lymphoid leukemia. N. Engl. J. Med. 365(8), 725–733 (2011).
Cellular immunotherapies offer perhaps the best proof of concept of the ability of immune cells to eradicate malignancy. However, the majority of these data derive from either the use of expanded tumor-infiltrating lymphocytes to treat metastatic melanoma or the use of donor lymphocytes in relapsed hematological malignancies following allogeneic hematopoietic stem cell transplantation. Genetic engineering of T cells to redirect specificity against tumor-associated antigens potentially overcomes one of the major hurdles to more widespread application. Despite early evidence of possible activity, limited in vivo expansion and persistence of adoptively transferred cells has been associated with disappointing clinical efficacy. A report from Porter and colleagues now demonstrates more fully the potential of such genetic modification in a patient with chronic lymphocytic leukemia, illustrating that when delivered in the right setting with appropriate costimulatory signaling, these cells can expand and persist, and in doing so effect quite remarkable anti-tumor activity.
Financial & competing interests disclosure
The author has no relevant affiliations or financial involvement with any organization or entity with a financial interest in or financial conflict with the subject matter or materials discussed in the manuscript. This includes employment, consultancies, honoraria, stock ownership or options, expert testimony, grants or patents received or pending, or royalties.
No writing assistance was utilized in the production of this manuscript.