Dr. Kahl on Remaining Challenges With CAR T-Cell Therapy in DLBCL

Brad S. Kahl, MD, a medical oncologist at Siteman Cancer Center and a professor of medicine in the Division of Oncology at Washington University School of Medicine in St. Louis, discusses remaining challenges with CAR T-cell therapy in diffuse large B-cell lymphoma (DLBCL).

Although 2 commercially available CAR T-cell therapies are approved for the treatment of patients with DLBCL, challenges remain, says Kahl. For example, some patients are ineligible to receive CAR T-cell therapy because traditional options cannot adequately control their disease, Kahl explains.

Additionally, the manufacturing time of the products may not be rapid enough to treat patients who require immediate intervention. Currently, ongoing research efforts are underway to develop off-the-shelf CAR T-cell products that will eliminate the manufacturing time of current, autologous products, Kahl says.

Finally, toxicity remains a concern when treating patients with CAR T-cell therapies, Kahl says. Although interventional strategies appear able to manage cytokine release syndrome, the potential neurologic toxicities that can arise with the modality are not largely understood, Kahl adds. Developing novel CAR T-cell therapies that have less toxicities or developing better interventions to mitigate the potential risk of neurologic toxicities will be beneficial for patients, concludes Kahl.