Australia’s Townsville Hospital adopts CAR T-cell therapy for cancer

It is the country’s second treatment site after Royal Brisbane and Women’s Hospital.

Australia’s Townsville Hospital and Health Service is set to offer CAR T-cell therapy for patients with blood-related cancers, such as leukaemia and lymphoma.

According to the Australian government, the establishment has been approved as the second treatment site for a statewide service previously available only through the Royal Brisbane and Women’s Hospital.

The treatment utilises T-cells modified with Chimeric Antigen Receptors (CAR) to harness the patient’s immune system in fighting cancer cells in the blood.

“Blood cancer patients who have not responded to traditional treatments like chemotherapy or radiation therapy, or patients whose cancer has come back after treatment, may be considered for CAR T-cell therapy,” Townsville Hospital and Health Service medical director, Andrew Birchley, said.

According to Birchley, the hospital expects to treat up to 10 patients during the first year of service.

“The launch of CAR T-cell therapy in Townsville has been an enormous team effort. I’d like to thank the local team, as well as everyone externally who’s played a role in making this a reality,” he added.