Breakthrough CAR-T Cell Therapies Show Promise in Fighting Aggressive Brain and Nervous System Tumors

August 26, 2024
Breakthrough CAR-T Cell Therapies Show Promise in Fighting Aggressive Brain and Nervous System Tumors
  • The tumor microenvironment of neuroblastoma features CD16a-expressing innate immune cells, which may play a role in the effectiveness of CAR-T therapies.

  • Promising results have been observed with GD2-CAR-T cells for treating diffuse midline gliomas and neuroblastomas, as well as CARv3-TEAM-E cells for glioblastomas.

  • The review emphasizes the necessity for innovative delivery methods, such as locoregional infusion, to enhance CAR-T cell access to brain tumors.

  • Novel CAR-T cell approaches are crucial for improving treatment effectiveness against solid tumors, particularly in the challenging landscape of brain cancers.

  • The manufacturing process for autologous CAR-T cells typically takes about two weeks, but advancements have reduced this timeframe to as little as 2-3 days.

  • A recent review by Ugo Testa, Germana Castelli, and Elvira Pelosi highlights the therapeutic potential of chimeric antigen receptor (CAR)-T cells in treating nervous system tumors.

  • High-risk neuroblastoma, an aggressive pediatric solid tumor, expresses specific cell-surface antigens such as GPC2 and GD2, making it a target for innovative therapies.

  • Recent studies are engineering T-cells to express a GPC2-directed CAR and secrete a bispecific innate immune cell engager (BiCE) that targets both GPC2 and GD2.

  • Ongoing clinical trials are investigating HER-2 and EGFRvIII-targeted CAR-T therapies specifically for brain tumor patients.

  • Currently, FDA-approved CAR-T products are mainly for relapsed or refractory B cell malignancies, but there are ongoing clinical trials exploring their application in solid tumors.

Summary based on 2 sources


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