Dr. Stephen Grupp on Engineered Cell Therapy for the Treatment of Pediatric ALL

Stephen Grupp, MD, PhD, director of translational research for the center for Childhood Cancer Research at The Children's Hospital of Philadelphia (CHOP) and medical director of the Stem Cell Laboratory at CHOP, discusses the use of engineered cell therapy for the treatment of Acute Lymphoblastic Leukemia (ALL) in children.

ALL is the most common cancer in childhood, and in most cases it is treatable, says Grupp. However, for patients with recurrent and refractory disease there are limited options.

In a recent study, 48 recurrent/refractory pediatric ALL patients were treated with an engineered cell therapy that recognizes CD19. Ninety-four percent of the patients treated experienced a complete response in one month, says Grupp. After follow-up, it was determined that the likelihood of continued remission six months after initial response was 76%.