The Future of Multiple Myeloma Treatment
- The future of multiple myeloma treatment is looking bright, with many new therapies in development, like CAR T-cell therapy.
- Along with CAR T-cell therapy, other promising treatments for multiple myeloma include allogeneic CAR T-cell therapy and bispecific antibodies.
- With the development of these therapy options, as well as other discoveries in myeloma research, experts anticipate many breakthroughs for patients with multiple myeloma.
Along with CAR T-cell therapy, other promising treatments for multiple myeloma include allogeneic CAR T-cell therapy and bispecific antibodies. With the development of these therapy options, as well as other discoveries in myeloma research, experts anticipate many breakthroughs for patients with multiple myeloma.
Read MoreCAR T-Cell Therapy for Multiple Myeloma
CAR T-cell therapy is a recently developed treatment option that uses a patient’s own immune cells to destroy cancer. The therapy involves identifying immune cells that can recognize multiple myeloma and then engineering them to express a protein on their surface which allows them to kill cancerous cells.This type of therapy is favorable for people with advanced multiple myeloma who have not been responding well to the other available treatments.
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According to Dr. Landgren, there is currently one CAR T-cell therapy that the U.S. Food and Drug Administration has approved, with another one expected in the near future. “There is a second CAR T-cell (therapy) that’s anticipated to be approved at the beginning of 2022,” he explains. This depends on the success of clinical trials.
Allogeneic CAR T-Cell Therapy
Another similar form of CAR T-cell therapy is known as allogeneic CAR T-cell therapy. This involves using genetically engineered immune cells from another person, typically a donor who closely matches the recipient.
The major benefit of this type of treatment is that it eliminates the need to harvest and modify the patient’s own cells, which carries risk.
Dr. Landgren says, “These are donors that have donated their T cells. Instead of taking out the patient’s T cells, modifying them, and giving them back, you can just receive a batch of modified T cells.”
Bispecific Antibodies
Bispecific antibodies are a type of monoclonal antibody that targets two different types of molecules, or antigens. They are engineered to bind to myeloma cells and either kill them or flag them for destruction by your immune system.
Bispecific antibodies are effective in fighting cancer by stimulating an innate immune response against specific tumor-associated antigens. This type of therapy is still in development but shows great promise for the treatment of multiple myeloma and other cancers.
Dr. Landgren says, “There are probably 20 or 30 of these antibodies in development for multiple myeloma, as we speak.” He emphasizes that “many of these drugs are just amazing.”
The Future of Multiple Myeloma Treatment is Bright
In the future, it’s likely that multiple new therapies will be combined to treat patients with multiple myeloma.
Novel treatments that currently focus on treating patients with advanced disease that have not responded to other therapies will likely become standard treatments for those newly diagnosed with multiple myeloma.
Dr. Landgren stresses, “the results are pretty amazing in all these different modalities.” He’s looking forward to seeing what the next few years of research will bring.
“My prediction is that the field will probably change a lot in the coming year or years,” Dr. Landgren concludes. “I think we would see many new therapies being FDA approved, and that’s going to change the field for the better.”
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