Researchers found that naturally-occurring CD7-negative T cells avoid self-destruction and are good effectors in CAR T therapy for T cell blood cancers.
First, the genetically engineered cells became CD8+ killer T cells that wiped out his leukemia. Then they transformed into a stable population of CD4+ helper T cells that continue to circulate in his body.
Moderna’s, Pfizer’s, and Johnson & Johnson’s shots all offered protection against the virus regardless of cancer type, although slightly less so in people with blood cancer.
A trio of papers shows that specialized antibodies can direct T cells to destroy cells that display portions of mutant cancer-related proteins, as well as T cells that have become cancerous themselves.
Death rates among blood cancer patients who contract COVID-19 are higher than for those with other cancers, pointing to impaired immunity that makes it hard to overcome the virus.
Infusions of donor T cells to fight the cancer often fail, but sodium bicarbonate can counter lactic acid produced by leukemia cells, potentially improving remission rates in mice and humans.
A cancer researcher with a talent for leadership, Marks turned the Memorial Sloan Kettering Cancer Center into one of the world’s foremost oncology research institutions.