Hi Kelvin8r,
Top of the range question. In this series I have broadened the scientific theorem and rigour. Deep speculation in parts. No one has gone down this track with Cdh17 , so I have some literary licence. ( let's see how fast she goes) .I shall try and answer your question so most can understand.
Autologous Car T:
This is when doctors take your own immune cells, change them to fight cancer, and then put them back into your body. Because they’re your own cells, your body accepts them easily. But this process is slow, complicated, and expensive because it’s made just for you.
Allogeneic Car T “Off-the-Shelf”:
This is when the CAR-T cells come from a healthy donor, not from you. These donor cells can be made in large batches and stored, so they’re ready to use anytime—like medicine from a pharmacy shelf.
As you know if someone else’s immune cells go into your body, they might attack your healthy cells (this is called graft-versus-host disease, or GvHD, you mentioned that). Also, your body might reject these foreign cells.
So, to safely use donor CAR-T cells, scientists need to edit the donor cells’ genes to:
Remove the parts that cause them to attack your body.Changing the genes of these cells requires special tools and careful testing to make sure the cells are safe and work properly. This adds time, effort, and cost to making the cells.
But once it’s done right:
You can make many doses from one donor’s cells. Instead of making a unique batch for each patient (which is costly and slow), you can mass-produce and store these “off-the-shelf” CAR-T cells.
So, the cost per patient can drop a lot:
Even though the initial setup is costly, the price for each treatment can become much cheaper and more accessible in the long run.
Hide them from your immune system so your body doesn’t reject them.
This gene editing is like reprogramming the cells to be “friendly” and safe for anyone.
Changing the genes of these cells requires special tools and careful testing to make sure the cells are safe and work properly. This adds time, effort, and cost to making the cells.
But once it’s done right:
You can make many doses from one donor’s cells. Instead of making a unique batch for each patient (which is costly and slow), you can mass-produce and store these “off-the-shelf” CAR-T cells.
So, the cost per patient can drop a lot:
Even though the initial setup is costly, the price for each treatment can become much cheaper and more accessible in the long run.
Right now, CHM’s CDH17 CAR-T therapy uses your own cells (autologous), which is the standard approach.
They are also working on other “off-the-shelf” immune cell therapies (using natural killer cells), so they understand the gene editing and manufacturing involved.
If CHM wants to make “off-the-shelf” CDH17 CAR-T cells, they will need to invest in gene editing technology and new manufacturing processes, which will take time and money upfront.
I will also add setting up new patents and they can take 18 months alone just to go through the National Phase ( overseas jurisdiction).
We would likely need to invest $100 million AUD to develop and clinically test an allogeneic CDH17 CAR-T cell product.
This includes gene editing, manufacturing upgrades, preclinical and early clinical trials, and regulatory work. The process is costly and complex, but once successful, it enables cheaper, mass-produced CAR-T treatments for many patients.
I will try and get a benevolent bequest. Yep it's hard but never say never
It's a wishful scientific progression to advance to this point .
Kpax
(20min delay)