Are Allogeneic CAR-Ts the Future of LBCL Cancer Treatment? - Making Safe, Durable & Effective Universal Cell Therapies a Reality

We know that there is a strong demand from both academia and industry to produce reliable, ready made CAR-T cell therapies. New studies prove that Allogeneic CAR-T therapies could be the answer.

Allogene Therapeutics recently released exciting results from the Phase 1 ALPHA/ALPHA2 trials of the Allogeneic CAR T 'Cemacabtagene Ansegedleucel/ALLO-501' in Relapsed/Refractory Large B-Cell Lymphoma.¹ With the largest group of LBCL patients treated with an Allogeneic CAR-T product, and the longest follow-up to date (minimum of two years), this research has been 'the most robust allogeneic CAR T experience yet' and could pave the way for successful Allogeneic treatments in the future.²

Following the durable response data from these trials, experts have called this a 'landmark moment' for the field, since this data suggests 'opportunities to redefine the standard of care in oncology' in ALPHA3 trials.3 The currently ongoing ALPHA3 trial is designed to predict and intervene before relapse, which would be novel for LBCL patients.

The results included a Complete Response (CR) rate of 67% and 58% for ALPHA/ALPHA2, and among these patients who achieved CR, a Median Duration of Response (DOR) of 23.1 months was recorded. In addition, patients with extremely low disease burden demonstrated 'excellent disease outcomes'.

The growing interest in Allogeneic CAR-Ts as an alternative to Autologous CAR-Ts could result in the production of ready-made "off-the-shelf" CAR-T cell therapies, which would be cheaper and more efficient to manufacture. Compared to the patient-specific nature of Autologous CAR-Ts, where the process often becomes long, complex and expensive, Allogeneic CAR-Ts use a healthy donor's T-cells for treatment rather than using those within the patient's body. When successful, this provides an opportunity for a CAR-T cell immunotherapy that is easy to supply at scale because of its universal nature. Allogene Therapeutics' data revealed that for Allogeneic CAR-Ts, the median time to start of treatment was two days from study enrollment, compared to Autologous CAR-T cell products which require wait times often longer than 1 month, despite incremental advancements in manufacturing and supply chains.

However, despite the potential of Allogeneic CAR-T cell therapiesto address the pitfalls of Autologous CAR-T cell therapies, there is still a long way to go. It is important to address the current issues and challenges with Allogeneic CAR-T therapies, such as accepting the 'non-self', and graft versus-host disease. That's why the 7th Annual Allogeneic Cell Therapies Summit is your chance to join the conversation and work to make safe, durable & effective universal cell therapies a reality.

At the 7th Annual Allogeneic Cell Therapies Summit, you can address critical challenges in optimizing complex gene engineering, upscaling cell production and navigating the regulatory landscape, to accelerate your path to clinical and commercial success. This is your opportunity to brainstorm with industry experts at Adicet Bio, Takeda, AstraZeneca, Cellectis, Caribou Biosciences and more, to develop effective strategies that demonstrate the potential of off-the-shelf therapies for patients in need. View the exclusive event guide here.

The conference will span 3 jam-packed days and will focus on unveiling the next era of gene editing, engineering and clinical validation to meet manufacturing demand and widen patient access to Allogeneic cell therapies in oncology and autoimmunity. 100+ cell therapy experts will unite to focus on true innovation in the allogeneic field, and you could join them.

Register online today to join the conversation.