In Depth: The Battle to Make Cancer’s ‘Living Drug’ Affordable
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Chimeric Antigen Receptor T-cell therapy, or CAR-T, retrains a patient’s own T-cells to recognize and attack cancer cells. For many patients with blood cancers like leukemia, it offers the hope of a one-time, curative treatment.
When Yu Yonggang was diagnosed with an aggressive form of lymphoma in 2013, he began a grueling three-year journey through 15 rounds of intravenous chemotherapy and 20 courses of oral chemo. With his cancer recurring and his body ravaged, doctors gave him about six months to live.
“The long-term, high-dose chemotherapy destroyed my body and, even more, my will to fight,” the 62-year-old recalled. He had exhausted all available options until a fellow patient told him about Emily Whitehead, the first child in the world to receive a new experimental immunotherapy called CAR-T, who had remained in complete remission for three years. It was a lifeline.
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- CAR-T therapy offers hope for blood cancer patients in China, with an approximate 80% response rate for multiple myeloma, but costs over 1 million yuan, far exceeding basic national insurance coverage.
- As of late 2025, only 3,600 of 30,000+ eligible annual patients received commercial CAR-T, largely due to affordability; investigator-initiated trials offer cheaper but riskier alternatives.
- Commercial insurance partially helps but leaves large gaps; industry and experts seek price cuts, national coverage, or copayment as long-term solutions.
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Who’s Who
- JW Therapeutics Ltd.
- JW Therapeutics Ltd. is a Chinese biopharmaceutical company that developed the CAR-T therapy Carteyva (BeiNuoda). In 2024, the company reported 158 million yuan in revenue, a 9% decrease from the previous year, and a net loss of 590 million yuan. Carteyva is priced at just under 1.3 million yuan, making it a significant financial burden for patients in China.
- Fosun Kite Biotechnology Co. Ltd.
- Fosun Kite Biotechnology Co. Ltd. is a market leader in CAR-T therapy in China with its product, Yescarta (Yikaida). It was the first CAR-T therapy approved in China and holds the only second-line indication. In 2024, their sales were between 300 and 500 million yuan, treating over 800 patients since its launch. They have actively sought inclusion in China's national drug reimbursement list.
- CARsgen Therapeutics Holdings Ltd.
- CARsgen Therapeutics Holdings Ltd. (科济药业) sold 154 units of its Zevor-cel (SaikaiZe) after its March 2024 launch, bringing in 39.4 million yuan in revenue. Despite this, the company reported a net loss of 798 million yuan in 2024. CARsgen's product was one of the five CAR-T products included in the NHSA's 2025 innovation drug list for commercial insurance.
- Legend Biotech Corp.
- Legend Biotech Corp. developed Carvykti (Kaweidi in China) in partnership with Johnson & Johnson. In 2024, Carvykti generated $963 million in net trade sales in the US market, significantly outperforming other CAR-T therapies in China. The company has not disclosed its pricing or sales figures specifically for China.
- Johnson & Johnson
- Johnson & Johnson partnered with Legend Biotech Corp. to develop Carvykti (marketed as Kaweidi in China), a CAR-T therapy for blood cancer. In 2024, Carvykti achieved $963 million in net trade sales in the U.S. market, contrasting with much lower sales figures for CAR-T therapies in China. The article doesn't disclose Carvykti's specific pricing or sales data for China.
- Shanghai Fosun Pharmaceutical Group Co.
- Shanghai Fosun Pharmaceutical Group Co., under its former chairman Wu Yifang, advocates for the inclusion of CAR-T therapy in China's national health insurance program. While Fosun Kite Biotechnology Co. Ltd.'s Yescarta leads the market, the high cost of CAR-T poses a major barrier to patient access and limits sales for companies like Fosun.
- Hua-Dao Biopharma
- Hua-Dao Biopharma is a company that announced it had applied for market approval for its lymphoma CAR-T with a promised price of just 230,000 yuan to 250,000 yuan. They attribute the low cost to in-house production of all components and a fully automated manufacturing system. This price is significantly lower than the current average for CAR-T therapies in China.
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What Happened When
- 2013：
- Yu Yonggang was diagnosed with an aggressive form of lymphoma.
- 2013-2016：
- Yu Yonggang underwent 15 rounds of intravenous chemotherapy and 20 courses of oral chemo.
- 2015：
- Yu Yonggang enrolled in a clinical trial for CAR-T therapy in China.
- August 2017：
- Yu Yonggang received his CAR-T modified cells via infusion.
- July 2023：
- Wu Dan was diagnosed with diffuse large B-cell lymphoma.
- March 2024：
- CARsgen Therapeutics launched Zevor-cel (SaikaiZe) in China.
- 2024：
- Yescarta (Yikaida) sales reported at 300-500 million yuan, with over 800 patients treated in China.
- 2024：
- JW Therapeutics revenue reported at 158 million yuan, a 9% decrease from 2023.
- 2024：
- Legend Biotech Corp.'s Carvykti reported $963 million in net trade sales in the U.S.
- 2024：
- Fosun Kite and JW Therapeutics passed initial reviews for inclusion in national drug reimbursement list but withdrew before final negotiations.
- By late 2025：
- Only about 3,600 patients in China had received commercial CAR-T therapy.
- 2025：
- NHSA launched an innovation drug list for commercial insurance, and all five CAR-T products that applied were included.
- December 2025：
- Hua-Dao Biopharma announced it had applied for market approval for a lymphoma CAR-T at 230,000 to 250,000 yuan.
- 2025：
- Global pharmaceutical giants made deals totaling $4.95 billion for in vivo CAR-T technology.
- Late 2025：
- Number of patients needing commercial CAR-T in China exceeded 30,000.
- 2026：
- Wu Dan opted for CAR-T therapy, skipping other second-line options.
- 2026：
- Jiang Lin's father underwent an IIT CAR-T therapy at a specialized hospital in Beijing.
- 2026：
- Standard commercial CAR-T therapy price remained at 1 million yuan or above.
- 2026：
- CAR-T therapy in investigator-initiated trials cost around 100,000 to 150,000 yuan.
- 2026：
- In Shanghai, huiminbao plans capped coverage at 500,000 yuan; in Jiangsu, at 200,000 yuan. Wu Dan received 84,000 yuan reimbursement from her local huiminbao.
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