18 May 2018
Dr Rob Weinkove, clinical research fellow and clinical director of the CAR-T cell programme at the Malaghan Institute, recently featured on radioLIVE's Long Lunch with Wendyl Nissen to talk about CAR-T cell therapy and what it means for New Zealand.
CAR-T cell therapy involves redirecting a patient’s own immune cells (T cells) in the laboratory, to directly identify and attack cancer cells. These modified T cells are then returned to the patient where they can attack and destroy cancer cells. The T cells can act as ‘living drugs’, providing long-term protection against relapse, similar to a vaccine.
"We are seeing in some malignancies, in some of the trials coming out of the States and overseas, patients still in remission several years later," says Dr Weinkove.
The Malaghan Institute is excited to be bringing this ground-breaking technology to New Zealand in the near future.