He CAR-T cell treatmenta cellular immunotherapy procedure that is indicated for some types of hematological cancers, has been shown to be effective in patients with certain types of leukemias, lymphomas, and myelomas.
Although his capacity for development is “enormous”, as explained by the Dr. Armando López Guillermois indicated for lymphoblastic leukemias and diffuse large B-cell lymphomas, which has meant “a very important change for cancer patients.”
However, this treatment, which in Spain is financed by the National Health System, is not suitable for all patients.
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“They are used in patients who have not responded to conventional treatments, such as chemotherapy. You should not have a bad general condition or other circumstances that may pose a risk.
CAR-T immunotherapy is, without a doubt, the most revolutionized in the world of cancer. But how does CAR-T cell treatment work?
T lymphocytes, which are the cells of the immune system that are formed from stem cells in the bone marrow, are used to genetically modify them so that they can kill tumor cells.
“You have to go through a whole process to convert that lymphocyte into a cell that attacks the tumor cell, which they recognize as their own (which prevents rejection) to put an end to the disease,” says the oncologist at the Hospital Clínic in Barcelona.
What will be the most diagnosed cancers this year in Spain?
The specialists foresee that the most diagnosed cancers during 2023 in Spain will be cancers of the colon and rectum (42,721 new cases), breast (35,001), lung (31,282), (29,002) and urinary bladder (21,694).
At the opposite pole are the less frequent cancers, of which it is estimated that there will be fewer new diagnoses: non-Hodgkin’s lymphomas (9,943), pancreatic cancer (9,280), kidney cancer (8,626), malignant cutaneous melanoma (8,049), cancers of the oral cavity and pharynx (7,882), and cancers of the uterine body (7,171), stomach (6,932) and liver (6,695).
This therapy, highlights the specialist, achieves long-lasting remissions in many of the patients with hematological cancer. However, side effects can also occur, such as neurological ones that affect speech, tremors, delusions, and seizures.
But, Dr. López Guillermo emphasizes that “fortunately, it does not kill the patient, since mortality is really low, and it produces more benefits than harm.”
CAR-T Therapies: The Only Option for Many Cancer Patients
With a price that exceeds 300,000 euros, this treatment has nothing to do with chemotherapy, since it is an advanced therapy that consists of manipulating cells to “train” them and fight against tumor cells.
159,000 cancer deaths in 2040
Despite advances in early detection and cancer treatments, the mortality caused by this disease is very high. Thus, it is estimated that in the year 2040 there will be 159,000 deaths from this cause.
But the figure may be higher since these estimates have been made before the pandemic, so it is likely that they have errors in their calculation.
According to data from the National Institute of Statistics for the year 2021, there were 450,744 deaths. And again, tumors were the second leading cause of death, up almost one point from the previous year. Infectious diseases, which included COVID-19, were the third cause of death with 10.2% of the total.
And, in fact, figures estimate that 40% of patients who have undergone this treatment have managed to be free of the disease after 12 months.
And it has become the only alternative for patients, for example, with diffuse large B-cell lymphomas. It is one of the most frequent types and receives this name because the tumor cells are large lymphocytes.
It is fast growing, very aggressive, and can spread to organs if not acted quickly. Well, “30% of them do not respond to conventional treatments or relapse early.”
CAR-T therapies, a personalized and precise technique “is not combined with chemotherapy, since it would kill the cells that have been trained to kill tumor cells” and the main treatment for this type of patient.