Researchers at Penn Medicine have found that the effectiveness of CAR T cell therapy, a promising yet low-cost approach to enhanced cancer-fighting, can be potentially increased through relatively simple dietary supplement. According to the researchers, it was noticed first in preclinical studies that beta-hydroxybutyrate, one of the most significant constituents of ketogenic diets, could enhance CAR T cell performance. Now, the next step is to move these discoveries into clinical trials as new approaches to cancer treatment.
Presenting at the 66th Annual Meeting of the American Society of Hematology, research by scientists at Penn Medicine’s Abramson Cancer Center and the University of Pennsylvania reveals that one widely used dietary regimen provides a significant boost to CAR T cell therapy. Researchers discovered that CAR T therapy benefits with a commonly used dietary regimen known for its cutting-edge method in treating some cancers by changing a patient’s T cells to better seek and destroy cancer cells.
Co-lead author Shan Liu pointed out the novelty of using dietary interventions to improve CAR T cell outcomes, underlining the need to expand therapeutic options for this powerful treatment. The study, guided by senior researchers Marco Ruella and Maayan Levy, showed that a ketogenic diet—rich in fats and low in carbohydrates—helped improve tumor control and survival in laboratory mice. These studies had been attributed to the condition of ketosis, characterized by significant concentrations of the so-called beta-hydroxybutyrate, product from metabolism when there is increased ketosis.
The results show a clear improvement in CAR T cell expansion and activation, which might be a sign of potential enhancement in the therapy in the treatment of cancer. These results led to the initiation of a Phase I clinical trial to elucidate the effects of beta-hydroxybutyrate supplementation in human patients.
CAR T Cell Therapy
Although the preclinical data look promising, investigators note that the results here are preliminary and further research is needed before any recommendations for diet can be given. Further clinical trials need to be conducted with high scientific validity to prove therapeutic potential for this method. If successful, this supplement would provide an affordable means to make CAR T cell therapy more effective, opening the doors to new hope for millions of cancer patients.
