What is ABECMA? ABECMA (idecabtagene vicleucel) is a prescription medicine for the treatment of multiple myeloma in patients who have received at least four kinds of treatment regimens that have not worked or have stopped working. ABECMA is a medicine made from your own white blood cells; the cells are genetically modified to recognize and attack your multiple myeloma cells.

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ABECMA® is a
CAR T cell therapy
made from your own
immune cells

CAR=chimeric antigen receptor.

Not an actual patient.

Understanding CAR T cell therapy and ABECMA

ABECMA is a chimeric antigen receptor (CAR) T cell therapy—a treatment for multiple myeloma (MM) unlike anything you may have received before. CAR T cell therapies are made from your own T cells that have been reprogrammed to find and destroy specific target cells, which may include cancer cells and normal cells.

How ABECMA is made

CAR T Cell Therapy Process CAR T Cell Therapy Process

*CAR T cell therapies find and destroy specific target cells, which may include cancer cells and normal cells.
BCMA=B-cell maturation antigen; CARs=chimeric antigen receptors.

Refer to our Glossary of additional multiple myeloma and CAR T cell terms.

ABECMA is different from a stem cell transplant

A stem cell transplant (SCT) is another type of cell therapy that is commonly used to treat cancers of the blood, like MM.

The process for receiving an SCT is different than the process for receiving ABECMA:

  • ABECMA uses customized cells, where your T cells are modified to work just for you
  • A short course of chemotherapy before your ABECMA infusion is required
  • The initial monitoring period for ABECMA typically lasts about a week at the treatment center
  • No maintenance therapy for your MM is required after ABECMA as long as you are responding to treatment

See more details about the ABECMA Treatment Process.