6 ms·
Isn’t this treatment simply accomplishing the same thing that the current treatment does but in a targeted way with hopefully much fewer side effects? When you
by throwuwu 4y ago
Isn’t this treatment simply accomplishing the same thing that the current treatment does but in a targeted way with hopefully much fewer side effects? When you have cancerous T cells the only option is to eradicate all of them and start over with a bone marrow transplant. Normally that would mean frying them with radiation or poisoning with chemo which also effects a lot of other tissue. This treatment is supposed to only kill the T cells.
- specialist 4y agoThat's my noob understanding too. This is a more precise form of autologous transplant. I assume quick adoption of base editing for trickier cases, eg for T-cell acute lymphoblastic leukemia, like this patient had. Note that she had a previous transplant, using the more conventional treatment of her T cells. Just starting with base editing will be much less onerous to future patients. This is one tough person. Surviving chemo then two transplants is amazing. Just thinking about it crushes my heart. Source: Had bone marrow transplant 30+ years ago. My then experimental treatment became the default option (as applicable). Don't know much about biology or medicine, but I can repeat what I've heard and read.