Israeli doctors deploy patients’ own cells to fight blood cancer in major breakthrough
Rabin Medical Centre hails first three CAR-T treatments for multiple myeloma as early results show “very positive response”
Israeli clinicians have delivered a significant step forward in cancer care after Rabin Medical Centre confirmed it has successfully carried out its first locally developed CAR-T cell therapies for patients with treatment-resistant multiple myeloma.
The centre said three Israelis received the genetically engineered therapy earlier this month without complication, with all discharged as planned following the procedure.
The treatment – produced inside the Samueli Integrative Cancer Pioneering Institute at RMC’s Davidoff Cancer Centre – uses a patient’s own immune cells, which are collected, genetically modified in the laboratory and reinfused to seek and destroy cancerous myeloma cells. Multiple myeloma, a bone-marrow cancer diagnosed in around 550 Israelis each year, can be difficult to treat when existing therapies fail.
Dr Iuliana Vaxman, who heads the Centre for Multiple Myeloma and Rare Plasma Cell Disorders at the Davidoff Cancer Centre, said the early data was encouraging.
“As part of a clinical study, we began administering this treatment, and the early results show a very positive response,” she said. “This is significant news for these patients. The availability of this innovative, locally produced technology at RMC will allow us to provide truly comprehensive care.”
Prof Gal Markel, Director of the Davidoff Cancer Centre, said the achievement reflects a rapid build-out of advanced manufacturing and clinical capability under one roof.
“Soon, we will expand CAR-T development and treatment to include solid tumours such as liver and lung cancer, and later autoimmune diseases,” he said. “In a short time, we have established advanced capabilities for developing and manufacturing original therapies using cutting-edge technologies. This positions Rabin Medical Centre as a leader in advanced cancer treatment.”
The CAR-T programme is led by Prof Michal Besser, Chief Technology Officer at both the Samueli Institute and the Davidoff Cancer Centre, with the study overseen by Prof Moshe Yeshurun, Head of the Bone Marrow Transplant Unit, alongside Dr Vaxman and Prof Salomon Stemmer.
The Samueli Institute – founded in 2023 and headed by Avner Paz-Tsuk – produces the therapies under international advanced-therapy standards. The retroviral vector enabling the genetic engineering process was developed at the Max Delbrück Centre in Berlin by researchers Dr Armin Rehm and Dr Uta Hopken.
RMC said expanding in-house CAR-T development marks a milestone for Israel’s cancer community and provides a new option for patients whose disease no longer responds to conventional treatment.
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