Interview with CAR T cell expert Dr. Michel Sadelain in Human Gene Therapy

Michel Sadelain, MD, Ph.D., Director, Center for Cell Engineering, Memorial Sloan-Kettering Cancer Center in New York City, offers a fasci-nating perspective on the remarkable progress being made in the field of chimeric antigen receptor (CAR) engineered T-cell therapies to treat cancer. A lively and informative inter-view with Dr. Sadelain in which he also describes his leading role in advancing this rap-idly evolving field, is published in Human Gene.

Jennifer Adair, Ph.D., Fred Hutchinson Cancer Research Center (Seattle, WA), conduct-ed the interview with Dr. Sadelain ( asking him to trace the stunning events that led to FDA approval of the first CAR T-cell therapy last summer to treat acute lymphoblastic leukemia (ALL). Dr. Sadelain recounts his early interest and ongoing research in CAR T-cell engineering and shares his views on what next-generation CAR technology will look like and what are the greatest challenges and opportunities for this promising field.

"Dr. Sadelain's contributions have revolutionized the treatment of certain cancers," says Editor-in-Chief Terence R. Flotte, MD, Celia and Isaac Haidak Professor of Medical Edu-cation and Dean, Provost, and Executive Deputy Chancellor, University of Massachusetts Medical School, Worcester, MA. "While there have been earlier attempts to stimulate the immune system to battle cancerous cells, the CAR T technology has converted immune cells from being 'dirty bombs' to being 'precision-guided weaponry' in the fight against cancer, able to selectively target only the offending tumor cells."

More information:
Jennifer E. Adair, An Interview with Michel Sadelain, MD, PhD, Human Gene Therapy (2018). DOI: 10.1089/hum.2018.29063.msa

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