Cell and Gene Therapy Research To Benefit From New Stem Cell Collection Center
Nicola Alderson, COO at Anthony Nolan, explains how donor registries can help overcome stem cell supply chain issues.
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Since their emergence, cell and gene therapies have reshaped how we address previously untreatable diseases. Successfully bringing new cell and gene therapies to patients hinges not only on the discovery of treatments that elicit the desired biological response but also on overcoming the challenges of stem cell collection supply and demand.
Cell and gene therapy development begins with the collection of cells from donors, which takes place in a clinical (or apheresis) facility. A sharp increase in the demand for collection capacity for cell and gene therapies has placed a strain on the global supply chain.
Recognizing the greater reliance on stem cell donor registries for providing cells for research and manufacturing of these therapies, the stem cell charity Anthony Nolan is opening the Anthony Nolan Cell Collection Centre in Nottingham, UK. The facility will play a major role in expanding cell collection capacity by enabling donations for cell and gene therapy research.
Alongside enabling cutting-edge research into new cell therapies, the collection center will ensure stem cells can reach patients with blood cancer and blood disorders when they need them for life-saving stem cell transplants.
Technology Networks spoke with Nicola Alderson, chief operating officer at Anthony Nolan, to discuss some of the current stem cell supply challenges and learn more about how this new facility is positioned to help accelerate cell and gene therapy research.
Nicola Alderson (NA): Cell and gene therapies involve the transfer of new cells or genetic material to treat disease. They represent some of the most promising innovations in modern healthcare – offering new options for diseases that have previously been considered untreatable. Since the first CAR T-cell therapy was approved for use in the UK in 2018, more than 1,000 patients with blood cancer have received this groundbreaking treatment. And hundreds more cell and gene therapies are in development, with the potential to save and improve even more lives.
Cell collection, or apheresis, is the essential first step of development for many of these therapies. The technique has been used for decades for stem cell transplants, in which stem cells are collected from donors to be reinfused into patients with blood cancers or serious blood disorders.
Currently, the UK’s apheresis capacity is strained. It means only a fifth of donors on the UK aligned registry can donate on the date requested by the patient’s medical team, according to data from Anthony Nolan. With the incoming adoption of cell and gene therapies, some estimates suggest demand will increase by a further 25% over the next 2 years.
BF: Why are standardized and high-quality cell collections important for cell and gene therapies?
NA: Like any medical research, cell and gene therapy development relies on standardized and high-quality starting materials to give patients the best possible outcomes.
Anthony Nolan’s 50 years of facilitating transplants make us practice leaders in the collection and provision of stem cells. By partnering with Terumo Blood and Cell Technologies for apheresis technology, which is currently used in over 67% of white blood cell collections worldwide, our center will benefit from extensive data and analytics to continue to inform our practices.
BF: How will the opening of the Anthony Nolan Cell Collection Centre in Nottingham help accelerate cell and gene therapy research?
NA: Following its opening in the coming months, the Anthony Nolan Cell Collection Centre will be able to facilitate the majority of Anthony Nolan’s stem cell transplants and create capacity to support the development of cell and gene therapies.
As we ramp up our operation and increase the number of beds we have open to book, we expect the number of cell collections per day will increase – creating even more much-needed capacity for cell and gene therapies.
Academic and commercial partners will be able to access the center through Anthony Nolan’s Cell Therapy & Lab Services (CT&LS) to support clinical trials, research, treatment development and provision.
BF: The new center enables Anthony Nolan to integrate its cell therapy and laboratory services offering, what benefits does this have for potential partners looking to develop cell therapies?
NA: Anthony Nolan has been facilitating the collection and transplant of cells since 1974.
We launched our Cell Therapy & Lab Services in 2018 as a way to bring our expertise to the cell and gene therapy industry – recognizing that these innovative therapies could represent the future of healthcare and help even more patients.
Our new facility will now enable a major step-change in our ability to provide the industry with bespoke, ethnically sourced cellular materials.
By having full control of the collection process, we can tailor collections to meet the specific needs of our partners and help future-proof the UK’s apheresis capacity as demand grows.
BF: How will the new center complement research efforts in partnership with Nottingham University Hospitals NHS Trust on the use of umbilical cord blood in medical treatments?
NA: We’re pleased to be building on our existing relationships in Nottingham by opening the Cell Collection Centre close to our Cell Therapy Centre, located on the Nottingham Trent University campus.
The therapy center, which opened in 2008, is the first in the UK to combine a cord blood bank with a research facility that looks at new ways to use this valuable, stem cell-rich resource. Any cord blood collections that aren’t suitable for transplant are available for use by ethically approved academic and commercial research programs throughout Europe.
It means Nottingham will soon represent a hub of stem cell provision expertise, with the close links between centers allowing for a more integrated service.
Nicola Alderson was speaking to Blake Forman, Senior Science Writer at Technology Networks.
