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In a major step toward democratising access to advanced healthcare, Burjeel Holdings, a leading super-specialty healthcare provider in the Middle East and North Africa (MENA) region, and Caring Cross, a US-based non-profit dedicated to accelerating the development and delivery of advanced medicines, have announced a landmark partnership.
This collaboration will enable the local manufacturing of CAR-T (Chimeric Antigen Receptor T-cell) and stem cell gene therapies in the region. By significantly reducing costs and enhancing regional availability, the partnership aims to make lifesaving, next-generation treatments accessible to patients in the region who previously had limited access to such cutting-edge care.
CAR-T therapies represent a major advancement in the treatment of certain blood cancers such as leukemia and lymphoma. By reprogramming a patient's immune cells to target and destroy malignant cells, these therapies offer new hope to patients for whom traditional treatments have failed. However, global access remains limited due to the high costs of treatment—often ranging from $350,000 to over $1 million in the US and Europe. The partnership seeks to dismantle this barrier by enabling the production of CAR-T therapies at a fraction of the current price, making these treatments accessible to a vastly broader patient population in MENA and beyond.
Through this partnership, Burjeel Holdings aims to overcome this challenge by producing CAR-T therapies locally. A cornerstone of this collaboration is the projected 90% reduction in treatment costs compared to prices in the US and Europe. Caring Cross will support Burjeel Holdings with the necessary technology, materials, and specialized training to establish a local ecosystem for manufacturing CAR-T therapies, as well as providing lentiviral vectors essential for clinical development.
