Can TIL Therapy Deliver Lasting Responses in Advanced Sarcoma?

This is part 2 of a 2-part interview. Watch part 1 here.

In this video interview, Lauren Banks, MD, PhD, a sarcoma medical oncologist at Memorial Sloan Kettering Cancer Center, discusses findings presented at ESMO Congress 2026 from a pilot study evaluating lifileucel (Amtagvi), a tumor-infiltrating lymphocyte (TIL) therapy, in patients with advanced soft tissue sarcomas, including dedifferentiated liposarcoma (DDLPS) and undifferentiated pleomorphic sarcoma (UPS). Banks shares her perspective on the treatment’s safety profile, the durability of early responses, and the questions researchers hope to answer in ongoing clinical trials.¹^,²

Reflecting on the safety findings, Banks explains why the results were largely consistent with expectations for TIL therapy, particularly given the challenges associated with IL-2 support. She also highlights a potential distinction in the sarcoma population: patients often receive multiple chemotherapy regimens before TIL therapy, which may leave their bone marrow more vulnerable to severe cytopenias. Although all 10 patients who received lifileucel experienced grade 4 cytopenias, these abnormalities resolved.¹

Banks also discusses the early efficacy findings, emphasizing that the response data are encouraging but require cautious interpretation because of the small study population. Four of the 10 infused patients experienced partial responses. Among the 8 patients who received a TIL product meeting prespecified manufacturing specifications, the confirmed objective response rate was 50%. Banks identifies the durability of these responses as particularly promising, noting that all 4 partial responses remained ongoing at the September 9, 2026, data cutoff, with reported durations of at least 6, 26, 40, and 46 weeks.¹^,²

In the interview, Banks underscores the importance of determining whether these early findings translate into meaningful clinical benefit for patients who have limited treatment options after first-line chemotherapy. She discusses how the pilot study is helping establish the foundation for the phase 2 SARATOGA trial (NCT07741877), which is further evaluating lifileucel in advanced UPS and DDLPS. This next phase of research will be important for clarifying the potential role of TIL therapy in these difficult-to-treat sarcomas.²^,³

REFERENCES

1. Banks L, et al. Lifileucel in advanced soft tissue sarcomas: pilot study feasibility, safety, and efficacy findings. Presented at: European Society for Medical Oncology (ESMO) Congress 2026; October 23-27, 2026; Madrid, Spain. Abstract 3725RO.

2. Iovance announces data showing durable responses with lifileucel TIL cell therapy in advanced soft tissue sarcomas at ESMO 2026. News release. Iovance Biotherapeutics. October 26, 2026. Accessed October 28, 2026. https://tinyurl.com/tu44are7

3. SARATOGA: a study of lifileucel in patients with advanced undifferentiated pleomorphic sarcoma or dedifferentiated liposarcoma. ClinicalTrials.gov. Updated October 9, 2026. Accessed October 28, 2026. https://clinicaltrials.gov/study/NCT07741877