Laurie Adami on how CAR-T cell therapy saved her life

This is very special episode. I was joined by Laurie Adami, a financial services exec who was forced to give up her career after a cancer diagnosis in 2006.

After a 12 year battle fighting follicular non-Hodgkin lymphoma, and six lines of therapy, Laurie received a call from her oncologist, informing her about a new therapy called CAR-T, that was being developed by Kite Pharma.

They were opening a clinical trial at UCLA with five patients. Laurie was to be patient number one. One month after her CAR-T treatment, Laurie was in complete remission.

Laurie is now focused on patient advocacy, volunteering and fundraising for cancer research, especially CAR-T immunotherapy.

I wanted to speak with Laurie, to talk about her fight against follicular non-Hodgkin lymphoma, how she learnt about a new game-changing therapy called CAR-T, and some key issues around access to patients, safety concerns raised by the FDA, bridging the gap between industry and patients, and what she is doing now to raise awareness of the benefits and potential of CAR-T. We discuss the following:

• [2:40] Laurie's Diagnosis, Initial Treatment and Challenges
• [5:00] 12 Year Cycle of Six Lines of Therapy and Relapse
• [10:55] Hearing the Story of Emily Whitehead and CAR-T in 2012
• [14:22] Starting Sixth Line of Therapy in 2016
• [14:57] Receiving a call about a CAR-T Trial in Spring, 2018
• [18:55] Going Through CAR-T Cell Therapy
• [21:32] Complete Remission
• [24:18] Becoming a Patient Advocate Volunteer
• [26:41] Patient Access and Challenges
• [35:41] Laurie's Response to the FDA Safety Advisory on CAR-T
• [41:30] Bridging the Gap Between Industry and Patients
• [46:16] The Potential and Future of CAR-T Therapy
• [51:34] Living Life to the Full
• [58:41] Meeting the People that Saved Her Life

I really hope people enjoy listening to Laurie's story and that it gives hope to anyone affected by Cancer, and raises awareness of the potential for CAR-T Cell Therapy to save more lives.

There are a number of challenges that Laurie is on a mission to tackle, and I would urge people to listen to this episode to learn more about how we can bridge the gap between the industry and patients, and get safter, faster and more affordable access of these therapies to more patients like Laurie.

Thank you Laurie for sharing your story with us!