Kite and Arcellx's CAR-T anito-cel shows durable responses in hard-to-treat multiple myeloma

Phase 1 trial results for anito-cel, an investigational CAR-T cell therapy for relapsed or refractory multiple myeloma, have been published in the New England Journal of Medicine. CAR-T therapy works by taking a patient's own immune cells, engineering them to recognise and attack cancer cells, and infusing them back. Anito-cel targets BCMA, a protein on the surface of myeloma cells.

All 38 treated participants responded to the therapy,and nearly 80% achieved a complete response. Benefits proved durable: more than half of patients remained free of disease progression two years later,and 65% were still alive after three years. Serious immune-related and neurological side effects — a known concern with some existing CAR-T therapies — were uncommon,and no delayed neurological complications were reported. The investigators attribute the favourable safety profile in part to anito-cel's engineered BCMA-binding domain, which appears to kill cancer cells without triggering excessive immune activation.

Anito-cel is being developed by Kite,a Gilead company,and Arcellx,and is currently being evaluated in Phase 2 and Phase 3 trials to confirm these results in larger populations.

Read more: Mass General Brigham, 24 September ️2026 · The New England Journal of Medicine, 2026