KTE-C19 for Relapsed/Refractory B-precursor Acute Lymphocytic Leukaemia in Adults


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Year: 2018

Acute Lymphocytic Leukaemia (ALL) is a type of cancer affecting lymphocytes (a type of white blood cell), which results in overproduction of faulty lymphocytes. The cancer cells take over the bone marrow leading to anaemia, infection, bruising and bleeding. ALL is a rare condition, usually affecting more children than adults. Some people will not respond to treatment (refractory) or some will respond to treatment but develop ALL again (relapsed). For those with relapsed or refractory ALL, there are limited treatments available.
KTE-C19 is new type of therapy where T-cells (a type of immune white blood cell) are collected from a patient and engineered to be able to recognise molecules on the surface of cancer cells, which triggers the T-cells to attack and kill the cancer cells. KTE-C19 is given to patients by a single infusion. If KTE-C19 is licenced for use in adults with refractory/relapsed acute lymphoblastic leukaemia, it will provide an additional, cancer-specific treatment option for this population who currently have limited treatment options.