Galapagos showcases promising data from ATALANTA-1 study on CAR-T therapy

In early June 2025, Galapagos released new data concerning their ATALANTA-1 Phase 1/2 clinical study focused on a heavily pretreated patient group suffering from relapsed refractory non-Hodgkin's Lymphoma (R/R NHL). The study enrolled 64 patients, out of which 61 received treatment, highlighting a low 5% attrition rate, significantly below industry standards. This was attributed to the company's innovative approach to initiating lymphodepletion right after cell collection, allowing for the infusion of fresh product in a timely manner, which potentially reduces patient drop-out rates and enhances accessibility to CAR-T therapy. The encouraging safety profile of the therapy was showcased, with minimal high-grade toxicities and a majority of emergent adverse effects being hematological. Notably, all patients receiving fresh products did not require cytotoxic bridging therapies. Furthermore, the study demonstrated the feasibility of Galapagos' decentralized manufacturing approach to CAR-T therapy, reporting a median vein-to-vein time of only seven days post-leukapheresis. The results indicated a robust expansion of CAR T-cells with durable persistence observed for up to 21 months across various treatment levels and tumor types. The ongoing evaluation assesses the safety, efficacy, and feasibility of this therapy across eight hematological malignancies that currently have inadequate treatment options. The management of Galapagos remains optimistic about the potential of GLPG5101 while also acknowledging the inherent uncertainties during clinical trials and future developments.