Addressing Racial Disparities in a Rare Blood Cancer

Racial disparities in care and outcomes have been well documented but the problems can be particularly acute in cases of rare, genetic diseases. One example of this is the rare blood cancer cutaneous T-cell lymphoma. African Americans are twice as likely as people of European or Asian descent to develop CTCL, are typically diagnosed with more advanced disease, and have a lower survival rate from the condition. Kyowa Kirin North America, which produces the CTCL treatment Poteligeo, is working to address racial disparities to improve the diagnosis, care, and outcomes of African American patients with CTCL. We spoke to Kyowa Kirin Vice President of Public Affairs Lauren Walrath and Co-Leader of the Immune Cell Regulation and Targeting Program at the Sidney Kimmel Cancer Center at Jefferson Health Pierluigi Porcu, about CTCL, the disparities in care and outcomes for African Americans with the condition, and what they are doing to address that. Porcu is a paid consultant to Kyowa Kirin.