FDA Warns on CAR-Ts, but Benefits Outweigh Risks for Now

A couple of months after the FDA revealed that it was investigating the risks of chimeric antigen receptor T cell (CAR-T) immunotherapies, the agency is seeking updated language in their labels warning about those risks. However, the fact that the FDA is allowing the therapies to remain on the market suggests that their overall benefits outweigh their potential risks, says one industry expert.

In late November, the FDA revealed that it was investigating the risks of CAR-T therapies following reports of T cell malignancies in people who had undergone treatment with the agents. Less than two months later, the agency issued safety labeling change notification letters to the six available B cell maturation antigen (BCMA)-directed or CD-19 directed autologous CAR-Ts, which cover a range of hematologic cancers: