ASGCT 2019: editor’s picks

Written by Freya Leask
CAR-T Cell therapy Opinion Upcoming & past events

Here are my tips for what talks and events are not to miss from this year’s American Society of Gene & Cell Therapy Annual Meeting (29 April—May 2, Washington, DC, USA) agenda.

What is the ASGCT?

The American Society of Gene & Cell Therapy (ASGCT) is a professional organization for scientists, healthcare professionals and patient advocates involved in cell and gene therapy. Their annual meeting brings together professionals from around the world to present and discuss the latest developments in the field. 

This year’s meeting is being held at the Washington Hilton (Washington, DC, USA) from 29 April—May 2, 2019.

What should I look out for?

With cell and gene therapy becoming increasingly widely available for indications such as leukemia, I’ll be looking out for news on how patients can benefit from the latest CAR-T therapies. With the high prices being charged for them, I’m also interested to hear about advances in commercialization approaches and different methodologies for pricing and access.

  • CAR-T and Related Immune Effector Cell Therapies Workshop (Sunday, April 28, 10:10am) – the first session in this workshop will cover what we have learned during the first 5 years of CAR-T therapy availability. Speakers from MD Anderson Cancer Center (TX, USA), Fred Hutchinson Cancer Research Center (WA, USA) and more will discuss clinical results and long-term follow up data.
  • Post-Approval Commercialization Workshop (Sunday, April 28, 10am) – the final session in this workshop is covering value and reimbursement, assessing pricing and payment models for gene therapies. 
  • Pricing, Access, and Value of Gene Therapies: What Are the Real-World Challenges and Solutions? (Monday, April 29, 8am) – Francesca Cook (REGENXBIO) and Tim Hunt (Editas Medicine Inc.) will tackle this timely topic.

Although Kymriah (Novartis; Basel, Switzerland) and Yescarta (Kite, a Gilead company; CA, USA) are still on everyone’s lips, I’m also interested in see what other potential therapies are in the pipeline: which candidates have already shown success in cell therapy clinical trials? How can we predict which ones are showing the most potential? I’m hoping these are the sessions that will tell me.

  • Clinical Trials Spotlight Symposium (Monday, April 29, 8am) — hear highlights from ongoing cell and gene therapy clinical trials from around the world.
  • Evaluating Gene & Cell Therapy Product Candidates (Tuesday, April 30, 8am) — Eduard Ayuso (University of Nantes; France) and Isabelle Riviere (Memorial Sloan Kettering Cancer Center; NY, USA) will share their expertise.
  • Clinical Status of Oligonucleotide-based Drugs (Thursday, May 2, 8am) — Michelle Hastings (Rosalind Franklin University; IL, USA) and Janaiah Kota (Indiana University School of Medicine; IN, USA) will discuss oligonucleotide and RNAi therapeutics.

Read the full agenda here>>

How can I meet the RegMedNet and Regenerative Medicine team?

Adam Price-Evans (managing commissioning editor, Regenerative Medicine) and I will be present at ASGCT and we’d love to meet as many members and authors as possible. Email me or stop by booth #122 to meet us, discuss potential manuscripts, share your ideas for what you’d like to see on RegMedNet as well as pick up your hard copy of the latest Glossary for Cell & Gene Therapy and Regenerative Medicine!