Decentralized manufacturing of anti CD19 CAR-T cells using CliniMACS Prodigy®: real-world experience and cost analysis in India

Abstract

Chimeric Antigen Receptor (CAR) T cell therapy is an accepted standard of care for relapsed/refractory B cell malignancies. However, the high cost of existing industry-driven centralized production makes this therapy unaffordable in low and middle-income countries. Decentralized or point of care manufacturing has the potential to overcome some of these challenges. Here we demonstrate a decentralized manufacturing process for anti-CD19-CAR-T cells using a fully automated closed system (Miltenyi CliniMACS Prodigy®) is feasible in a developing country setting. Validation run data, as part of a pre-clinical trial safety evaluation, demonstrates the successful and robust manufacturing of anti-CD19 CAR-T cells with T cell expansion of 25 to 47-fold. The median transduction efficiency was 48.8%, with a median viability of 98% and fulfillment of all standard release criteria assays for clinical application. Evaluation of production costs in an academic, not for profit setting in India provide a benchmark for low and middle-income pricing which could greatly increase access to this therapy. Based on our analysis, the cost per product would be approximately $35,107 US dollars. Our data highlights the safety, efficacy, and reproducibility of the process for use in planned future clinical trials.