Q&A with Dr. Ralph Boccia on Bringing CAR T-Cell Therapy to Community Settings

The Center for Cancer and Blood Disorders (CCBD) can now deliver chimeric antigen receptor (CAR) T-cell therapy to patients in the Maryland area, including Washington, D.C., and Northern Virginia. Once the exclusive purview of academic medical centers, offering advanced therapies like CAR T-cell treatments in community settings gives patients more local options for their treatment.

Ralph Boccia, MD, FACP, is a board-certified oncologist and hematologist at CCBD, where he serves as Medical Director. He also holds the role of Medical Director of Research at AON, of which CCBD is a partner practice.

Ralph Boccia, MD, FACP

A nationally recognized leader in clinical research who completed his transplant training at UCLA, Dr. Boccia established the first FACT-accredited transplant unit in Maryland and the Washington, D.C. region at Holy Cross Hospital. Throughout his career, he has focused on advancing community oncology by introducing innovative therapies and increasing access to leading-edge treatments.

In the following Q&A, Dr. Boccia discusses the importance of offering cutting-edge cancer treatments close to where patients live and work.

Q: Why is offering CAR T-Cell therapy in local settings important for patients?

Offering CAR T-cell therapy in local settings matters because it can reduce the burden of travel and make a highly intensive treatment more manageable. Although CAR T is a one-time therapy, the process is still demanding: Cells are collected, manufactured individually, and then infused weeks later, with close monitoring needed afterward. Bringing care closer to home can help patients stay near their support systems during this period and make follow-up easier. That is especially important because, for the blood cancers CAR T treats, traditional therapy often means repeated visits or long stretches of treatment over months or years. Local access can make a complex journey feel more feasible, while still preserving the close oversight patients need.

Q: How do local practices benefit?

A: Treating patients with CAR T-cell therapy in a community oncology practice is an important step forward in our mission to provide every patient with access to the highest quality cancer care and the most advanced treatments available. By expanding access to CAR T-cell therapy through collaboration with our local community hospital, we are bringing innovative, life-saving treatments closer to home while helping to reduce the burden of care for our patients.

Q: What foundational capabilities or resources should community cancer care centers have in place before offering these treatments?

A: Any practice that wants to offer advanced therapies should maintain a robust clinical research program. One of our goals has always been to keep our patients in the community, to provide the care you were trained to give at academic centers, and to maintain that care in your community. So that’s why we are so dedicated to clinical research.

Q: How important is having a strong hospital partner in these endeavors?

A: A certain percentage of patients undergoing cancer treatment may require medical management in a hospital setting, so having a hospital partner is a critical success factor for patients. I’ve found that the best approach is to engage hospital clinicians directly rather than rely on hospital administration.

Q: Why is CCBD pursuing FACT certification?

A: Although FACT accreditation is not required by Medicare, other insurers and treatment manufacturers do require it. My organization is pursuing FACT certification in part to demonstrate quality to peer practices within AON. We can show what quality looks like, and people can then [emulate] those quality measures.

Q: Why should practices enter into clinical trials?

A: Providing a clinical trial program gives patients access to cutting edge novel therapies and physicians with experience using these novel agents. Clinical trials are an important on-ramp for practices that offer access to manufacturers and their playbooks on how to operate. Specific to T-cell treatments, clinical trials can build team experience with T-cell–redirected toxicity. And, at a larger scale, clinical trials can help a practice establish a foundation for future commercial programs.

Learn more about CAR-T cell therapy here.