By Taizan Emura

Yomiuri Shimbun Staff Writer

Japan will be able to domestically manufacture therapeutic formulations of CAR-T treatments, a type of immunotherapy that is becoming more commonly used due to its effectiveness against relapsed or refractory blood cancers, according to sources.

Currently, therapeutic formulations are mainly manufactured in the United States. If they are completely produced in Japan, it would save the time it takes to send cells and drugs back and forth between Japan and the United States, moving up the start date for treatment by about a week. Acquiring the knowledge to process cells in Japan will be another positive.

Tokyo-based Nikon CeLL Innovation Co., a subsidiary of major Japanese optical equipment manufacturer Nikon Corp., will be in charge of producing therapeutic formulations in Japan.

CAR-T therapy requires the extraction of immune cells from a patient's blood, genetically modifying them to enhance their ability to attack the cancer.

In Japan, four products made by foreign manufacturers are currently being used. All products require hospitals to extract cells, which will be sent by air to other countries such as the United States. The cells will then be processed and sent back to Japan to give to the patient. As the process takes about one to two months, the patient might end up dying while waiting for the cells to be sent back.

Nikon CeLL Innovation will be entrusted with the entire domestic manufacturing process for two products sold by U.S. major pharmaceutical company Bristol-Myers Squibb Co. for treating lymphoma and multiple myeloma. The Japanese arm of the U.S. company is preparing to obtain approval from the Health, Labor and Welfare Ministry for changing the manufacturing method of the products.

Once the products begin to be manufactured in Japan, patients' cells will be sent from hospitals to a Nikon CeLL Innovation factory in Tokyo, allowing treatment to begin earlier. The company plans to expand the factory by the end of March 2028.

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This article is from The Yomiuri Shimbun. Neither Dow Jones Newswires, MarketWatch, Barron's nor The Wall Street Journal were involved in the creation of this content.

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November 05, 2025 01:21 ET (06:21 GMT)

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