A new CAR T treatment has been delivered to the first myeloma patient, using an off-the-shelf approach with donor T cells aimed at a new target, CS1.

Most CAR T cell therapies in today's multiple myeloma clinical trials are "autologous," meaning they use the patient's own T cells. Many CAR T cell therapies in Phase I or II clinical trials are also targeting BCMA.

In the new MELANI-01 trial, open at MD Anderson Cancer Center, an off-the-shelf CAR T treatment is being used. This means that the T cells were obtained from a donor and the treatment is developed in advance. There is no need to wait for CAR T production as with the autologous versions. The treatment is called UCARTCS1 and the Phase I is a dose-escalation study to test the safety, expansion and persistence of the therapy. 

“This first patient dosing for our MELANI-01 clinical trial is an important advancement, as our team has worked tirelessly to develop and take the CS1 target from the lab to the clinic,” said Dr. André Choulika, Chairman and CEO, Cellectis. “In taking this next clinical step, we look forward to deepening our understanding of UCARTCS1 as a potential new treatment option for relapsed/refractory multiple myeloma patients in the future.”

Dr. Krina Patel at MD Anderson Cancer Center is leading the trial. The study is also open at Hackensack and will be open at Weill Cornell Medicine in the future.

It will be fascinating to learn how this compares to the current BCMA CAR T therapies and if they could potentially be used in combination in the future. 

To learn more about this study, click here.