Hugo Fernandez, MD
More than a year after introducing CART-T cell therapy, and with 20 procedures done to date, Dr. Hugo Fernandez is proud to say that immunotherapy is working as his team had hoped.
“Several of our CAR-T recipients are in complete remission at over a year out,” said Fernandez, chair and medical director of Moffitt Malignant Hematology and Cellular Therapy at Memorial Hospital West. “Our outcomes in cell therapy are above the national median and we’re making progressive improvement, including learning to mitigate side effects.”
CAR-T genetically alters T-cells harvested from a cancer patient’s blood to produce proteins called chimeric antigen receptors (CARs). The cells are reintroduced through a blood transfusion, with the protein then attaching to cancer cells and killing them. It’s a more targeted approach than chemotherapy, which kills healthy cells as well as cancerous ones and affects the entire body.
Another targeted therapy showing great promise in the treatment of lymphoma focuses on bispecific T-cell engagers (BiTEs). Fernandez says Moffitt/Memorial is participating in research trials for this approach, which activates cytotoxic activity in the T-cells that kills cancer cells.
