(Vienna, 10 September 2025) At University Hospital Vienna, a patient with a severe rheumatological autoimmune disease has been treated with CAR-T cells produced in-house for the first time in Austria. The patient's own T cells were processed using the most innovative technology in a special laboratory at the Department of Transfusion Medicine and Cell Therapy at MedUni Vienna and University Hospital Vienna, and then administered at the bone marrow transplant ward of the Department of Medicine I. The initiative is also embedded in the Competence Centre for Inflammation and Immunity (CCII) of University Hospital Vienna and MedUni Vienna, which supports translational collaboration between the participating departments and thus accelerates the development of new forms of therapy. The 57-year-old patient from the Clinical Division of Rheumatology, Department of Medicine III, has already been discharged and continues to receive outpatient care at University Hospital Vienna.
This milestone in the treatment of autoimmune diseases follows the regulatory approval granted in April 2025 for the production of CAR-T cells at the Department of Transfusion Medicine and Cell Therapy. The project was made possible by a research grant from the City of Vienna as part of the initiative to promote interdisciplinary cancer research, as well as funding from University Hospital Vienna and MedUni Vienna.
Academic cell therapy as a model for the future
With the establishment of point-of-care manufacturing, University Hospital Vienna and MedUni Vienna are taking a pioneering step towards patient-centred, university-based cell therapy. This model enables the development of tailor-made cell products directly at the clinical site. The focus is particularly on autoimmune diseases, which pose a major challenge due to their complexity and often severe clinical course, and for which there is therefore a great need for innovative therapies.
CAR-T cells: personalised immunotherapy
CAR-T stands for "chimeric antigen receptor T cells". This involves genetically modifying the patient's own T cells so that they can specifically recognise and combat diseased cells. While this therapy was originally developed for certain types of blood cancer, its further development is now opening up promising new perspectives in the treatment of severe autoimmune diseases.
Studies on the treatment of autoimmune diseases
A first clinical study on the treatment of therapy-refractory autoimmune diseases with point-of-care CAR-T cells is to be submitted before the end of this year. The entire process chain – from cell collection and genetic modification to return to the patient – will be carried out at University Hospital Vienna and MedUni Vienna. In addition to the planned in-house CAR-T cell study, further clinical studies in patients with severe autoimmune diseases are planned or in preparation in cooperation with the Clinical Division of Rheumatology, the Department of Transfusion Medicine and Cell Therapy, and the Bone Marrow Transplantation Unit.
With this initiative, University Hospital Vienna and MedUni Vienna, with their jointly founded Competence Centre for Inflammation and Immunity (CCII), are underlining their role as drivers of innovation in translational medicine and setting a milestone in the establishment of university-based, patient-oriented cell therapy in Austria.