Some encouraging and very inspiring news from the Monje lab and CAR-T cell therapy trials at Stanford Medicine.
Photo : Stanford News. Crystal Mackall (left) and Michelle Monje.
As part of the DIPG/DMG community it's impossible to understate how momentous this is.
It also confirms that our pursuit and funding of CAR-T trials in the UK as absolutely the right move, with complete belief that these powerful immunotherapies will hold a pivotal role in the curing of DIPG/DMG in the future.
The publication in the journal Nature titled 'Intravenous and intracranial GD2-CAR T cells for H3K27M+ diffuse midline gliomas' reports the results of the clinical trial which are "entirely unprecedented in the treatment of this universally fatal disease"
"Of 11 patients, nine showed benefits, including reduced symptoms and tumour volume. Four patients had their tumour reduced by half or more. And, most exciting of all, one patient, Drew, had a complete response, meaning that his tumour has disappeared"
Drew is now 4 years post DIPGÂ diagnosis.
Therapies like these are not possible without the courageous patients and their families, years of multidisciplinary teamwork, and hard-fought steps in research to bring this forward as an effective therapy.
Abbie's Army funded the Monje lab back in 2017-19 where some of the grant awarded covered the pre-clinical work involved towards the trial (which was so impressive) it was clear to see then, that the UK absolutely must follow.
Work is still needed to optimise CAR-T therapy and achieve durable responses for every patient, but it is a wonderful glimmer of hope on a long road of devastation and every reason to be optimistic.
We can only hope that we see some similar outcomes for patients who choose to enrol here in the UK on our co-funded study CARMIGO, for CAR-T cell therapy which also targets GD2.
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