Artiva to shut down autoimmune cell therapy program after patient deaths

Artiva is winding down its autoimmune cell therapy work after two deaths reported in a trial of the approach, according to STAT+. The company says the recent fatalities are a setback for efforts to apply cancer cell-therapy strategies to autoimmune diseases.

BioPharma Dive reports that Artiva will quit the program and cut staff following the patient deaths. The outlet also places the decision in a wider context, noting that Artiva is the third company recently to disclose fatal events in autoimmune cell therapy trials, after similar announcements from Novartis and Bristol Myers Squibb. Across both reports, the emphasis is on what the deaths mean for ongoing interest and risk assessment in this treatment area.