It is likely that everyone has known someone with cancer. Cancer is something that we always see for benefits, research, etc… Cancer is a beast that everyone wants to be killed. Lymphoma is a type of blood cancer that started in the white blood cells. It can tend to be very aggressive and deadly. There is a therapy called CAR T-cell therapy. This therapy involves the extraction of white blood cells and reprogramming the T cells. These T cells have a protein called Chimeric Antigen Receptor (CAR). CAR is like an antibody, which makes the T cells a good component for immunity. Once returned to the body, these T cells attack the diseased cells to fight the cancer.
The engineering of a type of CAR T-cell therapy eventually called axicabtagene ciloeucel (Yescarta) has been formed for decades. This therapy has given years of people’s lives back to them that cancer wanted to take. Like so many other things, it cannot be all good. While it does give back many years back, this therapy has the possibility to cause some deficits. It can cause neurological problems. Some of these include speech issues, delirious episodes, and seizures. These are severe and can be fatal.
Because of these issues the NCI researches changed the original design of the CAR T-cell. In clinal trials it has been proved to cause fewer neurological problems while remaining to be as effective as the first trial. The new therapy showed lower cytokine levels in the blood. The researchers are attributing this to the reduced neurological problems. There is an aspect that I wish was different. One treatment of CAR T-Cell therapy can cost upwards of $375,000. This does not even include hospital stays, housing, transportation, etc… Cancer doesn’t have a filter. It doesn’t choose who it attacks or if they have enough money or not. Despite the immense cost, moments like this are monumental in medicine and I hope to see the cure for cancer in my lifetime available for people of all financial backgrounds.
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