For over 30-years autologous stem cell transplantation has been the standard of care for patients with relapsed diffuse-large B-cell lymphoma (DLBCL).
The international Zuma-7 trial randomised 359 patients with relapsed/refractory DLBCL or patients with DLBCL who had relapsed within 12-months of their initial therapy to a novel T-cell immunotherapy called CAR-T (chimeric receptor antigen -T-cell cell therapy) or standard of care with platinum-based chemotherapy and an autologous stem cell transplant. The overall survival was significantly better in patients receiving CAR-T compared to standard of care. In April 2023, NICE recommended CAR-T therapy with Axi-Cel for patients with relapsed/refractory DLBCL or for those patients where the disease had relapsed within 12 months of completing initial chemotherapy. This is a ground-breaking new treatment which is now available for patients in the UK.