Interdisciplinary Discussion, 8. - 9. April 2024, Halle (Saale)

The onset of Chimeric Antigen Receptor (CAR) T cell therapy marks a revolutionary development in the field of immunotherapy, achieving notable success since its approval in 2017 for treating B cell malignan-cies. Designing a patient's own T cells to specifically identify and eradicate tumor cells has successfully treated individuals with previously incurable hematologic cancers.

While CAR T cells are currently predominantly utilized in anti-tumor therapy, their initial conceptualization aimed at a broader objective of targeting membrane antigens, opening the door to numerous potential applications. Subsequent studies have explored the application of CAR T cells in non-malignant pathologies, encompassing autoimmune diseases, infectious diseases, and more recently, conditions such as cardiac fibrosis and cellular senescence.

Within this interdisciplinary discussion, key findings and implications of CAR-based therapies for non-malignant conditions are presented.