CHAPEL HILL, NC (Ivanhoe Newswire) – Nearly 90,000 people will learn this year that they have lymphoma. It is a cancer of the immune system. More specifically, it is a cancer that attacks the white blood cells. Many patients can be cured with a combination of chemotherapy and immunotherapy. But for some people, that doesn’t help. A new therapy is now giving them another – possibly final – chance at a cure.
John Bell is a cigar lover who appreciates not only the taste but also the connections a cigar conveys.
“I once heard someone say that cigars are the best way to cement friendships, and I believe that’s true,” says John Ivanhoe.
But after 24 years, his part-time hobby, working in a cigar shop, was in danger.
John recalls: “I noticed swelling in my neck lymph nodes on the left side, right here.”
John was diagnosed with large B-cell lymphoma – an aggressive cancer of the lymphatic system – and underwent six months of chemotherapy.
“I was pretty devastated when we got to the end and found it wasn’t entirely successful,” says John.
The clinical director of the cell therapy program at UNC Health, Dr. Natalie S. Grover, believed that CAR T cell therapy would be his best option.
“This involves using the patient’s own immune cells to specifically target a marker on the lymphoma cells. Their T cells are now specifically directed to attack their cancer cells,” explains Dr. Grover.
The side effects were severe – John’s temperature rose to 41 degrees Celsius. His blood pressure dropped. He spent 18 days in hospital. But a month later he was feeling better.
“We hope his lymphoma is cured,” says Dr. Grover.
Now John is back in the cigar shop and enjoying every single moment.
“I’m fine. I have no symptoms at all and it’s almost as if it never happened,” says John with relief.
CAR T-cell therapy is still under review. Although the FDA directs manufacturers of these therapies to add the highest safety warning to the treatment, the agency says the overall benefits outweigh the potential risks.
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