The FDA expanded its approval for CAR-T therapy in treating cancer patients with relapsed or refractory follicular lymphoma after two or more lines of systemic therapy.
A May 31 news release said the accelerated approval was granted for tisagenlecleucel, developed at University of Pennsylvania's Abramson Cancer Center in Philadelphia. This medication remains the only CAR-T cell therapy approved for both adult and pediatric patients.
"Being able to expand the reach of this personalized therapy to patients with follicular lymphoma is an exciting milestone for our team, our patients, and their families," said Stephen Schuster, MD, director of the Richard Berman Family Center for Innovation in CLL and Lymphomas in Penn's Perelman School of Medicine and the Abramson Cancer Center. "For too long, we have had little to offer our patients when they relapse, and with today's news, we can offer them new hope."