SHREVEPORT, La. — Ochsner LSU Health – Feist-Weiller Cancer Center is now offering CAR T cell therapy to eligible patients in North Louisiana, expanding access to advanced treatment for blood cancers in the region.
The addition of chimeric antigen receptor T-cell therapy marks a significant development for patients in the Shreveport-Bossier area and across the Ark-La-Tex, allowing them to receive specialized care closer to home rather than traveling to distant medical centers.
CAR T therapy uses a patient’s own immune cells to target cancer. Physicians collect T-cells from the patient’s blood, which are then modified in a laboratory to recognize cancer-specific proteins. The engineered cells are multiplied and infused back into the patient, where they work to identify and destroy cancer cells. The treatment is used for certain blood cancers, including leukemia, lymphoma and multiple myeloma.
Ochsner LSU Health said it is the only provider of CAR T therapy in North Louisiana and surrounding areas. The system expects the local availability of treatment to reduce travel burdens and improve patient outcomes by allowing individuals to remain near family support systems during care.
“This is a defining moment for healthcare in North Louisiana,” said David Callecod, chief executive officer of Ochsner LSU Health. “Our community deserves access to the same life-saving treatments available anywhere in the country, and we are proud to deliver exactly that.”
The Feist-Weiller Cancer Center offers a range of services for blood cancer patients, including diagnosis, treatment and survivorship programs. In addition to CAR T therapy, the center provides blood and marrow transplants, a procedure that replaces diseased bone marrow with healthy stem cells.
The center treats multiple forms of blood cancer, including leukemia, lymphoma and multiple myeloma, and serves as a regional hub for specialized oncology care.
Through its partnership with LSU Health Shreveport, the center also provides access to clinical trials, offering patients opportunities to receive emerging therapies while contributing to ongoing research.
“Access to advanced therapies like CAR T is not just about treating cancer, it is about transforming outcomes and saving lives,” said Dr. Richard Mansour, director of the Feist-Weiller Cancer Center.
Ochsner LSU Health is a partnership between Ochsner Health and LSU Health Shreveport. The system serves more than 162,000 patients across North Louisiana through three acute care hospitals and multiple outpatient facilities, supported by more than 4,200 employees and approximately 950 physicians and residents.