Novartis Cell Therapy Unit To Close: Implications For CAR-T Could Be Big

Novartis is closing its high-profile cell and gene therapy unit – the one responsible for developing CAR-T therapies. The move suggests Novartis’s outlook for the CAR-T field may be changing, though it’s not clear why.

Novartis AG's decision to disband its cell and gene therapy unit – the business responsible for developing one of the most advanced CAR-T therapies in the industry – has raised questions about the Swiss pharma’s outlook for an area of oncology research that has been thought to be groundbreaking.

It was only four years ago that Novartis in-licensed the CAR-T (chimeric antigen receptor T-cell) technology from the University of...

More from Anticancer

More from Therapy Areas

In Brief: Kezar Plots Lupus Revival For Zetomipzomib As FDA Lifts Hold On Hepatitis Trial

 
• By 

The go-ahead to resume a trial for its only drug candidate, zetomipzomib, in hepatitis could give Kezar a glimmer of hope of reviving another halted study in lupus nephritis.

Hopes Rise For Sickle Cell Gene Therapy Access As 33 States Join CMS Program

 

CMS said that 33 US states plus the District of Columbia and Puerto Rico had joined a program whereby the agency negotiates outcomes-based contracts on their behalf.

AstraZeneca’s Amyloidosis Drug Fails In Phase III But Subgroup Hopes Persist

 

Anselamimab was expected to complement Alexion's portfolio of amyloid therapies, but regulators will have to be convinced of its benefits to a patient subgroup in the CARES trial.