Roswell Park experts to share latest advances in the treatment of blood-related cancers

Reviewed by Emily Henderson, B.Sc.Apr 26 2022

Roswell Park Comprehensive Cancer Center specialists will share the latest advances and developments in the treatment of blood-related cancers at the 2022 Tandem Transplantation & Cellular Therapy Meetings of the American Society for Transplantation and Cellular Therapy (ASTCT) and Center for International Blood and Marrow Transplant Research (CIBMTR) in Salt Lake City, Utah, from April 23 to 26.

Highlights of Roswell Park's invited presentations at the meeting include discussion of the much-anticipated results of an ongoing clinical trial of a chimeric antigen receptor (CAR) T-cell therapy for multiple myeloma as well as the management of graft-versus-host disease (GVHD) during the COVID-19 pandemic.

Promising results for a new indication for CAR T-cell therapy for multiple myeloma

Jens Hillengass MD, PhD, Chief of Myeloma, will share the results of CARTITUDE-2, the first study to use a recently FDA-approved CAR T-cell therapy, ciltacabtagene autoleucel (cilta-cel), in patients with relapsed or refractory multiple myeloma after only one to three prior lines of therapy.

"For the first time, patients in rather early lines of treatment received this CAR-T cell therapy," says Dr. Hillengass. "The results of CARTITUDE-2 have been highly encouraging. A single cilta-cel infusion led to early and deep responses, with 85% of patients showing a complete response and good tolerability."

Presentation details: 73 - Updated Results of Cartitude-2: Sunday, April 24, from 4 to 4:15 p.m. MDT, Salt Palace Convention Center, Ballroom D

Personalizing therapy for patients with chronic GVHD

In an ASTCT Spotlight Session, Nataliya Buxbaum, MD, Assistant Professor of Oncology in the Department of Pediatrics and a physician with the Roswell Park Oishei Children's Cancer and Blood Disorders Program, will discuss Roswell Park's work to develop a much-needed path to personalized therapy for patients with chronic GVHD, which occurs when the donor's transplanted immune cells attack the recipient's healthy cells.

"While we have several FDA-approved drugs and other therapies that are sometimes effective for some patients with chronic GVHD, finding the right therapy usually requires trial and error," says Dr. Buxbaum, a specialist in the field of hematopoietic stem cell transplantation. "Sometimes patients end up trying several lines of therapy for several months before any meaningful clinical response is achieved. This remains the main challenge in our field, and it can be overcome with personalized therapy -; selecting the right drug for the right patient at the right time."

Presentation details: Chronic GVHD Biology – What We Do and Don't Know? Sunday, April 24, 8:45 a.m. MDT, Salt Palace Convention Center, Hall C, PIT Room 1

Impact of COVID-19 and socioeconomic disparities on treatment of blood cancers

In poster sessions on Sunday, April 24 (6:30-7:30 p.m. MDT, Salt Palace Convention Center – Hall A), Muhammad Salman Faisal, MD, a fellow in the Department of Medicine, will present the findings from two Roswell Park-led studies:

• Poster 256 "Socioeconomic and Racial Barriers to CD19 Chimeric Antigen Receptor T Cell Therapy (CART) Access" highlights the disparity that currently exists in access to CAR T-cell therapy based on race or access to adequate health insurance, with African Americans and uninsured patients being much less likely to receive necessary treatment.
• Poster 496 "Bamlanivimab monoclonal antibody treatment in patients with graft versus host disease (GVHD) diagnosed with COVID-19 infection" discusses the safety and effectiveness of bamlanivimab, a monoclonal antibody that was granted emergency-use authorization for treatment of mild to moderate COVID-19, in immunocompromised GVHD patients with COVID-19 who had undergone transplantation.