Dr. Luke on Future Research With T-Cell Therapy in Melanoma

Jason J. Luke, MD, FACP, associate professor of medicine, Division of Hematology/Oncology, and director of the Cancer Immunotherapeutics Center Immunology and Immunotherapy Program, University of Pittsburgh Medical Center Hillman Cancer Center, discusses the future of T-cell therapy in melanoma. 

The field will have to evaluate the infrastructure of T-cell therapies as they continue to move into standard practice, says Luke.

Notably, the complexity​ of treating a patient with T-cell therapy is greater than infusing a drug in an outpatient setting​, says Luke. For example, patients who receive tumor-infiltrating lymphocyte therapy are required to undergo surgery. Then the tumor must be processed in a lab, shipped to the vendor, and then shipped back to the lab.

Ultimately, there are more moving parts with T-cell therapy compared with treatments that are given in standard, ambulatory practice, Luke concludes.