Bon Secours becomes certified site for CAR-T Cell therapy
July 10, 2023
Bon Secours St. Francis is now offering CAR T-Cell therapy, a new type of immunotherapy that’s transforming cancer care. This treatment uses genetically engineered versions of a patient’s own immune cells to seek and destroy blood cancers including lymphomas, some leukemias, and multiple myeloma.
“Surgery, radiation, and chemotherapy are common treatment options for cancer patients, but thankfully, science is constantly evolving and that means new treatments are always being developed,” said Andrew Honeychuck, Administrative Director of Oncology Services for Bon Secours St. Francis. “We’re excited to be able to expand the care options available here in the Upstate for our patients, especially because CAR T-cell therapy has been showing promising results for the future.”
CAR T-cell therapy is a newer treatment option that uses substances from your own body to boost the immune system and eliminate cancer. In this case, T-cells – a type of white blood cell that help our body’s immune system defend against foreign invaders. Using this new therapy, a patient’s T-cells are extracted and genetically modified in a lab by adding a protein called chimeric antigen receptor, or CAR. It acts like a navigation system that helps the T-cells track down and kill cancer cells. Once modified, the new T-cells are re-infused into the patient’s body to launch an attack on the disease.
This highly specialized, highly personalized therapy can be very helpful in treating some types of cancer, even when other treatments are no longer working. To learn more about this treatment and whether it’s right for you, or to read more about what other oncology treatments are available at the St. Francis Cancer Center, visit bonsecours.com.
About Bon Secours
Bon Secours St. Francis is part of Bon Secours Mercy Health, one of the 20 largest health systems in the United States and the fifth-largest Catholic health system in the country. The ministry’s quality, compassionate care is provided by more than 60,000 associates serving communities in Florida, Kentucky, Maryland, New York, Ohio, South Carolina, and Virginia, as well as throughout Ireland. Bon Secours St. Francis provides compassionate medical care to thousands of area residents through Bon Secours St. Francis Downtown and Bon Secours St. Francis Eastside, as well as a network of primary and specialty care practices, and ambulatory care sites across the Greenville region. Consistent with its commitment to serve each patient with dignity, BSMH provided more than $600 million dollars in community investments across five states in 2021, ensuring that cost is not a barrier to health care for our patients in need. In addition to charity care, BSMH invests in programs that address chronic illness, affordable housing, access to healthy food, education and wellness programs, transportation, workforce development and other social determinants of health that directly affect the communities we serve. The mission of Bon Secours St. Francis is to extend the compassionate ministry of Jesus by improving the health and well-being of our communities and bring good help to those in need, especially people who are poor, dying and underserved. For more information, visit BonSecours.com.
