University launches advanced cell therapy center for cancer treatment

ANTALYA

A new research center dedicated to producing advanced cell therapies used in cancer treatment has been established at Akdeniz University in southern Türkiye, marking a significant step toward domestic production of cutting-edge medical technologies.

The university announced the launch of the “Advanced Health Research Center,” which will manufacture CAR-T cells — an innovative form of immunotherapy that genetically reprograms a patient’s immune cells to recognize and destroy cancer.

The therapy is particularly used in patients with treatment-resistant or relapsed leukemia and lymphoma.

Speaking at a press conference introducing the facility, the university’s rector, Özlenen Özkan, described CAR-T therapy as a groundbreaking medical approach that enables a patient’s immune system to act as a targeted weapon against cancer.

“CAR-T technology reprograms a patient’s T cells so they can specifically identify and attack cancer cells,” Özkan said.

Özkan noted that the therapy is currently available in only a handful of specialized centers worldwide, adding that the new facility will become the eighth center globally capable of producing and administering the treatment.

Explaining the procedure, Ömer Özkan, director of the university’s Organ Transplant Center, said the therapy involves extracting a patient’s blood, isolating immune cells and genetically modifying them in the lab.

The modified cells are multiplied and then reintroduced into the patient’s body, a process that takes roughly 10 days.

The new facility will allow treatment to be performed domestically at significantly lower cost.

The center is expected to begin clinical treatments in mid-April following regulatory approval, with an initial capacity to treat 100 patients annually, potentially rising to 150 as demand grows.