A cancer patient in her 70s has become the first person in Taiwan to have a costly — more than NT$8.19 million (US$264,108) — chimeric antigen receptor (CAR) T-cell therapy covered by the National Health Insurance (NHI) system.
The relapsed diffuse large B-cell lymphoma (DLBCL) patient received the 30-minute CAR T-cell infusion at 10am at Hualien Tzu Chi Hospital on Tuesday, attending physician Lee Chih-cheng (李啟誠) said.
The woman was recovering well, but is to be kept in hospital for the next two weeks to monitor for potentially life-threatening reactions before being discharged, Li said.
Photo: Chiu Chih-jou, Taipei Times
After a period of remission following her initial DLBCL diagnosis nine years ago, the woman’s cancer returned two years ago, he said.
CAR T-cell therapy, which uses genetically altered white blood cells to fight and destroy cancer cells more effectively, has been covered by Taiwan’s NHI system since November last year.
NHI coverage is critical for patients, as the therapy costs so much.
Hematology Society of Taiwan secretary-general Huang Tai-chung (黃泰中) said that 40 percent of DLBCL patients could be completely free of cancer after receiving CAR T-cell treatment, while another 13 percent could be partially cured.
Due to the high cost, the NHI Administration has limited coverage to only two types of cancer patients, including those with relapsed DLBCL, for a period of up to two years.
People with B-cell acute lymphoblastic leukemia (B-ALL), one of the most common types of childhood cancer, are also eligible to have CAR T-cell treatment covered by the NHI system.
It is estimated that the NHI Administration will use NT$800 million to cover the treatment for about 110 cancer patients each year, the administration said.
Six other people — one with B-ALL and five with DLBCL — are to receive CAR T-cell treatment covered by the NHI system at either National Taiwan University Hospital or Taichung Veterans General Hospital this month, NHI Administration Director-General Shih Chung-liang (石崇良) said on Tuesday.
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