But last week, two more patients died of cerebral edema, which caused the trial to be put on hold. The drug genetically reprograms patients’ T-cells — a type of white blood cell involved in immune response — to attack cancer cells. The U.S. Food and Drug administration has forced a pharmaceutical company to halt clinical trials of an experimental cancer drug after three patients died while undergoing treatment. Earlier this year, an experimental drug trial in France was halted after a man died and four others were hospitalized while receiving treatment for neurological disorders. Juno Therapeutics, a Seattle-based biotechnology company started in 2013, was testing the new treatment called JCAR015, also known as the ROCKET trial.

Source: National Post July 08, 2016 15:56 UTC