
First-in-Human Trial of CRISPR-Cas9 Begins in Lung Cancer Patients
A hospital in China has made history by injecting a patient with lung cancer with revolutionary, yet controversial, CRISPR-Cas9—edited T cells. The first patient was injected on October 28.
A hospital in China has made history by injecting a patient with lung cancer with revolutionary, yet controversial, CRISPR-Cas9—edited T cells, according to a news report in
The phase 1 trial, registered on
PD-1 is targeted by both nivolumab (Opdivo) and pembrolizumab (Keytruda).
The key to using this technology is post-editing cell validation—CRISPR is known to have errors that can insert edits in the wrong places on the genome. In China, a biotechnology company called MedGenCell is expected to validate the cells to ensure that the right genes have been knocked down, before the cells are reintroduced into patients.
Lu You, MD, an oncologist at Sichuan University who is leading the trial, told Nature that the first round of treatment was smooth, and the patient is expected to receive another injection. Lu also shared that his team will follow the patients beyond the 6 months indicated in the protocol to document any treatment benefits.
Meanwhile, similar efforts are ongoing in the United States, led by Carl June, MD, an immunologist at the University of Pennsylvania. This summer, a federal biosafety and ethics panel
Trial sites include the University of Pennsylvania, the MD Anderson Cancer Center, and the University of California, San Francisco.
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