UC San Diego Health is the first health system in San Diego County to offer a novel bladder-sparing gene therapy for the treatment of localized bladder cancer.
This new treatment is the first and only FDA-approved gene therapy injected directly into the bladder for non-muscle invasive bladder cancer (NMIBC). The gene therapy, called nadofalagene Filadenovec (Adstiladrin), addresses an unmet need for patients who no longer respond to Bacillus Calmette-Guerin (BCG), a bacterial immunotherapy for cancer treatment that has long been the first-line treatment. Although BCG is a common first-line treatment, it eventually fails and ultimately leads to a complete removal of the bladder.
The American Cancer Society predicts that 83,000 new cases of bladder cancer will be diagnosed this year, and about 17,000 people will die from the disease. NMIBC is the most common type of bladder cancer, accounting for about 75% of cases. It is a type of localized bladder cancer that has not spread or invaded the muscle wall of the bladder.
“To date, the primary treatment for NMIBC has typically been surgical resection followed by intravesical therapies such as immunotherapy or chemotherapy. Unfortunately, when these interventions prove ineffective, the standard treatment approach has been cystectomy, which carries significant morbidity risks,” said Amirali Salmasi, MD, associate professor of urology at UC San Diego School of Medicine, urologist at UC San Diego Health, and member of UC San Diego Moores Cancer Center. “This innovative gene therapy approach has the potential to delay or eliminate the need for cystectomy.”
UC San Diego Health urologists have started five patients on bladder gene therapy so far. The drug is administered into the bladder through a urinary catheter once every three months and offers a treatment option for patients who no longer respond to BCG therapy.
Here’s how it works: Bladder therapy is a recombinant adenovirus gene therapy that uses a type of virus to deliver genetic material into cells. Once injected into the bladder, it penetrates the bladder cells and delivers a gene that codes for interferon (a natural substance that helps the body’s immune system fight disease), which becomes integrated into the cells’ DNA. The bladder cells then express interferon, which stops the bladder cancer from growing.
“This groundbreaking gene therapy marks an important milestone in bladder cancer treatment, as there have been limited advances for patients whose disease does not respond to BCG treatment,” said Aditya Bagrodia, M.D., Associate Professor of Urology, UC San Diego School of Medicine, Urologic Oncologist, UC San Diego Health, and affiliated with UC San Diego Moores Cancer Center.
UC San Diego Medical Center offers comprehensive bladder cancer care and has been repeatedly ranked among the best in the nation for both cancer care and urology. U.S. News & World Report.
“As the region’s only NCI-designated comprehensive cancer center, UC San Diego Health is a champion for implementing innovative new therapies across the system,” said Diane Simeon, MD, director of UC San Diego Health’s Moores Cancer Center.
UC San Diego Health’s Moores Cancer Center is the only National Cancer Institute-designated Comprehensive Cancer Center in San Diego County, the highest ranking of any cancer center in the U.S. The NCI recognizes centers across the country that meet rigorous standards for cutting-edge, multidisciplinary research focused on developing new and better approaches to preventing, diagnosing and treating cancer.