Autoimmune Researchers Seek Answers After Deaths in CAR T-Cell Trials Scott Harris October 02, 2026 (+++)

https://www.medscape.com/viewarticle/autoimmune-researchers-seek-answers-after-deaths-car-t-cell-2026a10010xi?ecd=wnl_edit_tpal_etid8759446&uac=148436CN&impID=8759446 After three patient deaths and the indefinite pause of several clinical trials, questions are swirling over the future of chimeric antigen receptor (CAR) T-cell research for autoimmune diseases. “I think this is an important moment in time for us,” Sayeef Mirza, MD, MPH, a hematologist/oncologist and cellular immunotherapy investigator at H. Lee Moffitt Cancer Center and Research Institute, Tampa, Florida, told Medscape Medical News. “I think we are very excited with the advent and the discoveries of how beneficial CAR T is for lupus and scleroderma and multiple sclerosis, which are kind of the first poster children of autoimmune disease, being successfully treated with CAR T-cell therapy. But with these types of toxic and fatal events, it's a moment for pause to figure out what we can do as cellular therapists and hematologists and disease specialists. How can we work together to prevent this from happening?” A 35-Year-Old Man With Hematemesis, Abdominal Pain, and Frozen Shoulder Sarah El-Nakeep, MD https://reference.medscape.com/viewarticle/35-year-old-man-hematemesis-abdominal-pain-and-frozen-2026a1000zyl?ecd=wnl_edit_tpal_etid8759446&uac=148436CN&impID=8759446 The Case Challenge series includes difficult-to-diagnose conditions, some of which are not frequently encountered by most clinicians, but are nonetheless important to accurately recognize. Test your diagnostic and treatment skills using the following patient scenario and corresponding questions. If you have a case that you would like to suggest for a future Case Challenge, please email us at ccsuggestions@medscape.com with the subject line "Case Challenge Suggestion." Fast Five Quiz: Colorectal Cancer Practice Essentials Reviewed by Elwyn C. Cabebe, MD; Karl J. D'Silva, MD https://reference.medscape.com/viewarticle/fast-five-quiz-colorectal-cancer-practice-essentials-2025a1000du8?ecd=wnl_edit_tpal_etid8759446&uac=148436CN&impID=8759446