Sep 9, 2026 —
Researchers at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT) have developed a way to preserve CAR T cells during freezing and shipping using non-toxic sugars in place of harsh chemical cryoprotectants, an approach that could let more hospitals deliver the therapy without specialized processing equipment. The work was published in Trends in Biotechnology.
CAR T-cell therapy uses a patient’s engineered immune cells to attack blood cancers such as acute lymphoblastic leukemia, non-Hodgkin lymphoma, and multiple myeloma. Its reach is limited in part by logistics: the cells are fragile, and current cryopreservation relies on chemicals and infrastructure that many centers lack, so only a small share of U.S. hospitals can currently process these therapies.
By replacing conventional cryoprotectants with a natural antifreeze sugar, the method simplifies preparation and could broaden where CAR T therapies can be administered. It is a laboratory advance, and further work would be needed to bring it into clinical manufacturing.
