Samsung Medical Center announced on the 13th that it has surpassed 200 cases of chimeric antigen receptor (CAR)-T cell therapy, a treatment method that selectively kills only cancer cells. This marks four years since the initiation of CAR-T therapy in South Korea in April 2021.
CAR-T cell therapy differs from conventional anticancer drugs. Instead of injecting drugs to kill cancer cells, it utilizes the patient's own immune cells. The T cells, a type of immune cell, are genetically modified to carry chimeric antigen receptors (CARs) that target only cancer cells. After culturing these modified cells, they are reintroduced into the patient's body for treatment. This method selectively kills cancer cells, resulting in fewer side effects. Treatment is complete with a single manufacturing and administration. The world's first CAR-T cell therapy product, "Kymriah," developed by global pharmaceutical company Novartis, was introduced in South Korea in 2022, while Janssen's multiple myeloma CAR-T therapy, "Carvykti," received domestic approval in March 2023.
Kim Won-seok, head of the CAR T-cell therapy center and a professor of hematology and oncology, said at the symposium commemorating the 200 cases of CAR T-cell therapy held on the 10th at the Samsung Medical Center's cancer hospital auditorium, "The entire hospital worked together, and as a result, we achieved the first 200 cases in South Korea last November." At this symposium, the successes and experiences of Samsung Medical Center's CAR T-cell therapy over the past four years were shared, focusing on patients with lymphoma, multiple myeloma, and acute lymphoblastic leukemia in children and adolescents.
The treatment results are also promising. Compared to the reported treatment response rate of 52% in international Phase 2 clinical trials related to CAR T-cells, Samsung Medical Center's response rate is 59%, surpassing that benchmark. Last year, a medical team including Yao Ming, head of the pediatric hematology-oncology department at National Taiwan University Hospital, visited to inquire about the secrets of CAR T-cell therapy.
Samsung Medical Center was the first in South Korea to establish a "CAR T-cell Therapy Center" and is currently operating a multidisciplinary treatment system. Faculty from the main departments, hematology and oncology, and pediatrics treat patients alongside specialized oncology nurses. A systematic management system for CAR T-cell therapy patients has been established, involving medical personnel from various departments such as laboratory medicine, neurology, infectious diseases, and critical care medicine, aiming to improve treatment outcomes.
Director Kim Won-seok stated, "Not only did we start CAR T-cell therapy first in South Korea, but we also aim to make this the center that excels in CAR T-cell therapy in the future," adding, "We will strive to provide more diverse treatment alternatives so that more patients with hematologic cancers can receive better treatment."