The Philadelphia area is home to more cell and gene therapy companies than anywhere else in the world, according to a new report from the Chamber of Commerce for Greater Philadelphia.
The area is home to about 10% of the world's cell and gene therapy companies, and the number of companies that have set up laboratories, offices, or campuses in the area has doubled since 2018.
They employ an estimated 7,000 people and have created several significant construction projects across the region.
The field is still in its infancy, but scientists are optimistic that these new therapeutics will lead to major advancements in how health care providers can treat, prevent, or cure disease.
Cell and gene therapies involve training cells from the body's immune system to fight off cancer and other diseases, or modifying genetic material and DNA to correct a problem caused by a genetic mutation like with sickle cell disease.
Researchers at the University of Pennsylvania in Philadelphia, in partnership with Novartis pharmaceutical company, which has offices in King of Prussia, pioneered CAR-T cell therapy over a decade ago.Kymriah became the first FDA-approved gene therapy drug for cancer in 2017.
Children's Hospital of Philadelphia and the University of Pennsylvania are among the top 10 institutions in the world with the largest numbers of gene therapy patents, the report shows.
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