Roswell Park on the cutting edge of CAR T-cell therapy

Immunotherapy has changed the way we treat all kinds of cancer by taking full advantage of the innate genius of the immune system. Cell therapy, a type of immunotherapy, is an evolving and expanding field that offers great promise for patients and their loved ones. At Roswell Park, a growing team of industry leaders seek to push the boundaries of this emerging field to save more lives. Led by Deputy Director Renier Brentjens, MD, PhD, The Katherine Anne Gioia Endowed Chair in Cancer Medicine, this team will work seamlessly to bring innovative therapies from bench to bedside.

Cell therapy uses cells, sometimes gene-engineered, to work with a patient’s immune system to stop cancer growth and kill existing cancer cells. The production of those cells needs to happen in a sophisticated, dedicated facility that is built exactly for that specific purpose. With donor support, Roswell Park is broadening our capabilities to expand the pace and scope of available treatment for patients. This expansion will set up Roswell Park as a leader in cell production for immunotherapies and cell therapies and get us one step closer to being a global destination for this innovative cancer care.

Leading the Way

Roswell Park is dedicated to accelerating access to the most promising immunotherapy treatments through clinical trials. Few institutions in the nation have the facilities for pre-treatment, manufacturing and post-treatment of immunotherapies and gene therapy clinical trials. With a recent investment from New York State and with the support of donors through the Igniting Cancer Breakthroughs campaign, Roswell Park has all of this, making it uniquely positioned to lead cutting-edge trials. 

With your support, Roswell Park's new cell production facilities are ready to bring therapies to patients faster. Roswell Park experts will also be able to use the expanded facilities to bring existing treatments to more patients, participate in more clinical trials and research treatments that are still on the horizon. 

“This is a time of tremendous hope and promise,” explains Dr. Brentjens. “Cellular therapy is in its infancy, but it’s already dramatically reshaping what we can achieve through cancer therapy. I’m incredibly excited about the work the team will do in the next few years — the time we are going to be able to give back to patients with even advanced cancers, the cures that are within our reach today.”

The construction and management of these state-of-the-art facilities comes with the need for a significant investment of $50 million. With $30 million already committed from the New York State Economic Development Corporation, Roswell Park is counting on donors to provide the remaining $20 million through the Igniting Cancer Breakthroughs campaign to fund the cellular therapy trials in which Dr. Brentjens’ team sees great promise and to complete the cell production facilities to continue to pursue cell therapy innovations.

Christopher’s Story

Since 2008, Christopher Vogelsang has been a patient of Roswell Park, living with lymphoma. He navigated his first battle with lymphoma at the same time as his wife, Charlotte, was fighting metastatic breast cancer. After a successful stem cell transplant Christopher went into remission, but Charlotte sadly lost her battle in 2010. “One of us has to make it,” she told him. And he did. Life carried on for Christopher and his family. He was “lucky enough to love twice,” and married Karen, combining two beautiful families and taking “a shortcut to grandchildren!” 

Maintenance care held off his lymphoma until 2022. Under the care of Francisco Hernandez-Ilizaliturri, MD, Director of Lymphoma Research at Roswell Park, Christopher determined his next step: CAR T-cell therapy. He already knew the basics about CAR T from conversations with Dr. Hernandez and from reading he had done independently. The hope of success combined with the higher anticipated quality of life drew him to this cutting-edge option. 

After quite a journey, Christopher can now say his scans and bloodwork are clear! The CAR T-cell therapy was a great success, and he is slowly but surely recovering and reclaiming the activities and athletics that have always been part of lifetime of otherwise excellent health.

“It was a gift to be under this care and to have CAR T here in Buffalo,” Christopher said. “We had really good results with CAR T, and I know Dr. Brentjens is here to do more research in CAR T for other cancers. This is a whole field that is evolving, and we’re blessed to have super intelligent people who are doing the research here … It gives hope to so many more patients who might be looking at a very tough road depending on their cancer. This is where CAR T is going and how it’s evolving to meet the needs of other types of cancer.”

Christopher is not only a patient, but a dedicated Roswell Park donor, as well. He has seen firsthand how groundbreaking science turned into a lifesaving treatment for him. That only makes him more committed to the cause.

“This is cutting-edge science and treatment,” he said. “The opportunities for different therapies in CAR T for different types of cancers scientifically is probably out there, but it just takes those dollars to fund the research.”