Patient- and disease-related factors increasing the risk of infection after CAR-T therapy

Muhammad Bilal Abid, MD, MRCP, Medical College of Wisconsin, Milwaukee, WI, talks on patient- and disease-related factors influencing the risk of infection in chimeric antigen receptor T-cell (CAR-T) recipients. Patient-related factors include age, race and ethnicity, socioeconomic status, BMI, performance status at time of vaccination and comorbidity burden. Disease-related factors such as disease status at time of vaccination, LDH levels, prior lines of treatment, prior hematopoietic stem cell transplant (HSCT), interval between diagnosis and HSCT, and cytogenetic risk have also been shown to impact the risk of infection in this patient population. In addition, early data is suggesting that measurable residual disease (MRD) status at the time of CAR-T infusion could correlate with SARS-CoV-2 vaccine response and risk of infection. This interview was recorded virtually.