STAT+: After two deaths in autoimmune cell therapy trial, Artiva is shutting down
Recent deaths are setbacks in drug companies’ interest in applying cancer therapy strategies to autoimmune diseases.
Artiva Biotherapeutics announced on Tuesday that it is ceasing operations following two deaths in a trial of its cell therapy for autoimmune diseases, a development among numerous safety incidents in a promising research area. One participant in the Phase 2 study passed away from a neurological complication after receiving the NK cell therapy treatment.
Researchers concluded the death was probably not due to the cell therapy itself, but rather a chemotherapy administered prior to the infusion of the new cells. It is standard practice to administer chemotherapy before infusing cell therapies to reduce the patient's white blood cell count and create space for the new cells. The second participant experienced sudden death approximately two months after treatment.
Researchers determined that this was not related to any aspect of the treatment process, but the cause of death remains undetermined, according to the San Diego-based company. For the complete story, please visit STAT+.
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