The first leukemia patient to receive a groundbreaking treatment since it was made available on the NHS, commenting that it was “fantastic” and “very sci-fi”.
Oscar Murphy, who has an aggressive form of blood cancer, was given the ‘living medicine’ called CAR-T therapy at Manchester Royal Infirmary.
BBC news reported the historic moment when Oscar received the first of two infusions of his own immune cells, which were genetically modified to recognize and attack his cancer.
NHS England has agreed to fund the immunotherapy at several centers across the country and around 50 NHS patients are likely to benefit from it each year.
Oscar was diagnosed with B-cell acute lymphocytic leukemia (B-cell ALL) in March 2025.
He underwent chemotherapy and a donor stem cell transplant in July, but was told in November that his cancer had returned.
“The leukemia I have works so quickly,” the 28-year-old said, adding: “It takes an even faster response to stop the leukemia. And we now have an answer to that.”
In a clinical trial, 77% of patients went into remission after treatment, with half showing no signs of cancer after three and a half years.
On average, the treatment provided patients with 15.6 additional months of life.
Oscar’s haematologist, Dr Eleni Tholuli, said the CAR-T therapy was safer than existing treatments, with fewer side effects and much more effective.
“Typically, this type of leukemia is very aggressive and adult patients do not live longer than six to eight months. With this therapy we can provide them with years and possibly a cure. It is very important and revolutionizes the way we tackle this cancer.”
CAR-T therapy has been available on the NHS for several years for certain forms of leukemia and lymphoma, but has only now been extended to adults with B-cell ALL.
Oscar’s personalized treatment, or living medicine, was cryopreserved and sent to Manchester Royal Infirmary.
The small bag containing Oscar’s personalized treatment contained 100 million CAR T cells in just three teaspoons of liquid, and it took just a few minutes to enter his bloodstream.
Oscar expressed his amazement at how such a small dose could be so powerful, saying: “It’s very science fiction, but if it means permanently removing the cancer and my own cells can do it, that’s just fantastic.”
Because this is a ‘living drug’, the cancer-killing T cells remain in the body for a long time and will continue to grow and work in the patient after the final infusion.
