First patients treated with new cancer-fighting cell therapy lab

TOLERANCE. >> AREHE T NEWS COMES FIRST. THIS IS THE NEWS AT 5:00. BRITTANY: LOCAL RESEARCHERS ARE ON THE FRONTLINES OF A CUTTING-EDGE NEW CANCER TREATMENT THAT SOME ARE HAILGIN AS A CURE. THANK YOU FOR JOINING US, I’M BRITTANY JOHNSON. BRITTANY: AND I’M BRITTANY HOPE. U.C. DAVIS IS AMONG ONLY A FEW PLACES IN THE STATE. WITH A LAB TO CREATE SO-CALLED CANCER-FIGHTING CELLS AS PAROFT A NEW CELLULAR THERAPY PROGRAM. KCRA 3’S LYSEE MITRI,IS LIVE W.NO LYSEE, YOU SPOKE WITH THE FIRST PATIENT TREAD.TE WHAT HAVE YOU LEARNED? LETICIA: THIS NEW THERY APCAN BE VERY EFFECTIVE, BUT IT ALSO COMES WITH THE RISK OF SOME SERIS OUSIDE EFFEC.TS SO RIGHT NOW DOCTORS HERE AT THE U.C. DAVIS COMPREHENSIVE CANCER CENTER SAY IT’S BEING USED FOR PATIENTS WITH VERY AGRESSIVE FORMOFS CANCER WHO DON’T RELYAL HAVE OTHER TREATMENT OPTIO.NS ANN AND ALAN GAINES OF NEVADA CITY HAVE BEEN MARRIED F 5OR1 YEARS. BUT SINCE THE 4TH OF JULY -- >> IT’S A TWO PERSON PROJECT. LYE:SE THEIR PROJECT HAS BEEN ALAN’S HEALTH AFTER HE FOUND A LARGE LU.MP THE 77-YEAR-OLD RETIRED NAVY FIGHTER PILO WT,HO FLEW TWO TOURS IN THE VIETNAM WAR, WAS DIAGNOSED WITH AN AGRESSIVE FORM OF NON-HODGKIN’S LYMPHOMA. >> I SAID, I’M SCARED. AND HE SAID, WHY ARE YOU SCARED? IT'S’IN GOD’S HANDS. I’M MARRIED TO A PERSON OF GREAT FAIT LYSEE: WHEN CHEMOTHERAPY DIDN’T WORK, HIS DOCTOR SUGGESTED A NEW TREATMENT IN A CLINICAL TRIAL AT THE U. DC.AVIS COMPREHENVESI CANCER CENTER. >> RIGHT NOW, ABOUT 40% OF PATIENTS MAY HAVE LONG-TERM REMISSIONS FROM THIS WHICH IS REMARKABLE BECAUSE ALMOST ALL OF THOSE PATIENTS WOULD HAVE DIED OF THEIR DISEASE. LYE:SE IT’S CALLED CAR T-CALL THERAPY, FIRST APPROVED BY THE FOOD AND DRUG ADMINISTRATIONN I 2017. >> A WAY TO REMOVE TO REMOVE POTENTIALLY DEFECTIVE IMMUNE CELLS FROM A PATIENT WITH CANCER AND RE-ENGINEERING THEM TO TARGET AND KILL THE CANCER CELL VERY SPECIFICALLY. LYSEE: THOSE GENETICALLY MODIFIED CANCER-FIGHTING CELLS ARE NOW BEING MADE RIGHT HERE IN SACRAMENTO. IT’S THE ONLY UNIVERSITY OF CALIFORNIA CAMPUS TO LAUNCH ITS OWN LAB AND AMONG ONLY A FEW MEDICAL CENTERS IN THE WHOLE STATE TO DO .SO >> I SAID WOW, THAT SOUNDS GOOD. SIGN ME UP. AND WE DID, HERE WE ARE. LYSEE: LAST MONTH, HE BEMECA U.C. DAVIS HEALTH’S FIRST PATIENT TO UNDERGO CAR T-CELL THERAPY WITH CELLS MANUFACTURED IN ITS OWN LAB. >> HERE’S TODAY’S HEALTH REPORT. LYSEE: THE GAINES SAY THISS I ALAN THE SECOND DAY AFTER THE PROCEDURE HE WAS SUPPOSED TO BE EXHAUSTED FR. >> BUT SO FAR,SO FAR,SO GOOD. LYE:SE THEY SAY HIS CANCER IS NOW IN NEAR COMPLETE REMISSION, SO HOPEFULLY THEY CAN START FOCUSING ON SOME OTHER PROJECTS TOGETHER. >> WE’VE GOT PEOPLE IN THE FAMILY WE’D LIKE TO SEE AND HAVEN’T BEEN ABLE TO, SO WE’VE GOT SOME THINGS WE’D LIKEO . T LYSEE: ALAN’S WIFE DESCRIBES THIS AS HIS SECOND SECOND CHANCE AT LE.IF SIX YEARS AGO, HE FELL OFF A ROOF WHILE BUILDING A HOUSE FOR HABITAT FOR HUMANITY AND WAS ABLE TO RECOVER DESPITE A LOT OF BROKEN BON.ES LIVE IN SACRAMENTO, LYSEE MITRI, KCRA 3 NEWS. BRITTANY: LYSEE, HAVE OTHERS UNDERGONE THIS NEW CANCER TREATMENT SINCE GAINES? LYSEE: YES, THEY’RE WAITINGO T SEE HOW THOSE PATIENTS RESPO.ND DOCTORS SAY IT’S HAD DRAMATIC RESULTS AGAINST LEUKEMIAND A LYMPHOMA. AND IT’S NOW IN CLINICAL TRLS FOR OTHER TYPEOFS CANCER AND DISEASES. BRITTANY: THIS IS SUCH PROMISING NEWS. BRITTANY

Researchers are on the frontlines of a cutting-edge cancer treatment that some are hailing a cure. "Right now, about 40% of patients may have long-term remissions from this, which is remarkable because almost all of those patients would have died of their disease," said Dr. Joseph Tuscano with the UC Davis Comprehensive Cancer Center.UC Davis Health is among only a few places in the state of California to create so-called "cancer-fighting" cells as part of a new cellular therapy program.The treatment is called chimeric antigen receptor T-cell therapy, or CAR T-cell therapy for short. It was first approved by the Food and Drug Administration in 2017."It is a way to remove to remove potentially defective immune cells from a patient with cancer and re-engineer them to target and kill the cancer cell very specifically," Tuscano explained.Those genetically-modified cancer-fighting cells are now being made in Sacramento, California, making UC Davis Health the only University of California campus to launch its own lab and one of just a few medical centers in the whole state to do so. In December, Alan Gaines became their first patient to receive his genetically-altered T cells manufactured in the lab.The 77-year-old retired Navy fighter pilot, who flew two tours in the Vietnam War, was fighting an aggressive form of Non-Hodgkin lymphoma.After chemotherapy was not successful for Gaines, Tuscano suggested the new cellular therapy program."I said, 'Wow, that sounds good,' and we did. Here we are," Gaines said.Despite warnings of the risk of some serious side effects, Gaines said he has been feeling fine. Tuscano said it looks as though Gaines is headed toward complete remission of his cancer. Follow-up scans in two months will confirm that.Alan's wife, Ann, describes this as his second, second chance at life.She explained that in 2016, Alan fell off a roof while building a house for Habitat for Humanity. He was able to recover despite a lot of broken bones.Since Gaines, other patients have also signed on for the new cellular therapy program.Doctors say it has had dramatic results against leukemia and lymphoma, and it is now in clinical trials for other types of cancer and diseases. A University of Pennsylvania study published last week in Nature reported the treatment made chronic lymphocytic leukemia disappear in two out of the three patients in an early trial. A 10-year follow-up revealed the cancer was still in remission and yet the CAR T cells remained in the patients' bloodstream. Watch the video above for the full story.

SACRAMENTO, Calif. —

Researchers are on the frontlines of a cutting-edge cancer treatment that some are hailing a cure.

"Right now, about 40% of patients may have long-term remissions from this, which is remarkable because almost all of those patients would have died of their disease," said Dr. Joseph Tuscano with the UC Davis Comprehensive Cancer Center.

UC Davis Health is among only a few places in the state of California to create so-called "cancer-fighting" cells as part of a new cellular therapy program.

The treatment is called chimeric antigen receptor T-cell therapy, or CAR T-cell therapy for short. It was first approved by the Food and Drug Administration in 2017.

"It is a way to remove to remove potentially defective immune cells from a patient with cancer and re-engineer them to target and kill the cancer cell very specifically," Tuscano explained.

Those genetically-modified cancer-fighting cells are now being made in Sacramento, California, making UC Davis Health the only University of California campus to launch its own lab and one of just a few medical centers in the whole state to do so.

In December, Alan Gaines became their first patient to receive his genetically-altered T cells manufactured in the lab.

The 77-year-old retired Navy fighter pilot, who flew two tours in the Vietnam War, was fighting an aggressive form of Non-Hodgkin lymphoma.

After chemotherapy was not successful for Gaines, Tuscano suggested the new cellular therapy program.

"I said, 'Wow, that sounds good,' and we did. Here we are," Gaines said.

Despite warnings of the risk of some serious side effects, Gaines said he has been feeling fine.

Tuscano said it looks as though Gaines is headed toward complete remission of his cancer. Follow-up scans in two months will confirm that.

Alan's wife, Ann, describes this as his second, second chance at life.

She explained that in 2016, Alan fell off a roof while building a house for Habitat for Humanity. He was able to recover despite a lot of broken bones.

Since Gaines, other patients have also signed on for the new cellular therapy program.

Doctors say it has had dramatic results against leukemia and lymphoma, and it is now in clinical trials for other types of cancer and diseases.

A University of Pennsylvania reported the treatment made chronic lymphocytic leukemia disappear in two out of the three patients in an early trial. A 10-year follow-up revealed the cancer was still in remission and yet the CAR T cells remained in the patients' bloodstream.

Watch the video above for the full story.

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