Godae Anam Hospital Opens CAR-T Cancer Treatment Center... 6th in Korea

Korea University Anam Hospital announced on the 6th that it opened a Chimeric Antigen Receptor (CAR)-T Cancer Treatment Center on the 4th.

Korea University Anam Hospital announced on the 4th that it has opened the CAR-T Cancer Treatment Center. At the opening ceremony, participants including Yoon Eul-sik, Vice President for Medical Affairs at Korea University (5th from the right), are cutting the ribbon.
[Photo by Korea University Anam Hospital]

CAR-T cell therapy is a treatment that uses the patient's immune cells, T cells. It involves genetically modifying immune cells obtained from the patient's blood so that they can actively locate and destroy cancer cells, and then re-infusing them into the cancer patient.

CAR-T cancer cell therapy can effectively treat cancer cells while minimizing damage to normal cells. However, it requires infrastructure such as facilities meeting Good Manufacturing Practice (GMP) standards, so it is only available at a few hospitals in Korea.

Korea University Anam Hospital received facility approval from the Ministry of Food and Drug Safety on the 21st of last month, becoming the sixth institution in Korea to open a CAR-T Cancer Treatment Center. The center will begin treatment through multidisciplinary collaboration among the Departments of Hematology, Pediatrics and Adolescents, and Laboratory Medicine.

Yoon Eul-sik, Vice President for Medical Affairs and Director of Korea University Medical Center, said, "The CAR-T Cancer Treatment Center will open a new paradigm in cancer cell treatment. I would like to express my gratitude to the professors of the CAR-T Cancer Treatment Center who have prepared to introduce the latest techniques and equipment to help patients with intractable diseases, and I hope it will save more lives and lead the advancement of medicine."

Han Seung-beom, Director of Korea University Anam Hospital, stated, "With the opening of the CAR-T Cancer Treatment Center, Korea University Anam Hospital has solidified its position as a research-oriented hospital implementing cutting-edge medical bio technology. Based on the CAR-T Cancer Treatment Center, we will continue to strive for the advancement of advanced medicine, patient-centered treatment, and improvement of medical quality."

Park Yong, Director of the CAR-T Cancer Treatment Center and Professor of Hematology, said, "I would like to thank the many professors who have spared no support in every way for the opening of the CAR-T Cancer Treatment Center. We will do our best to ensure that this facility is well utilized for the treatment of patients with intractable cancers."

Meanwhile, Korea University Medical Center is the only medical institution whose all affiliated hospitals have been recognized as hematopoietic stem cell transplantation institutions. The medical center has been steadily conducting research and investment related to cell therapy, including hematopoietic stem cell transplantation. Korea University Anam Hospital is currently promoting the production of clinical pharmaceuticals for cancer immunotherapy drugs such as CAR-T therapeutics.