A New Lease on Life After CAR-T: Reflections from a Patient with Relapsed/Refractory Multiple Myeloma

Summary: Soon after retirement, Mr. He developed recurrent fever, fatigue, and bone pain and was diagnosed with IgG lambda multiple myeloma. He underwent chemotherapy followed by autologous hematopoietic stem cell transplantation, but the disease did not achieve the hoped-for response. He later came to GoBroad Shanghai Zhaxin Hospital, where targeted and immunotherapy-based treatment combined with chemotherapy kept his disease under control for several years. In 2025, follow-up testing again raised concern for relapse, at a time when several previous drugs and treatment approaches were no longer providing sufficient control. After comprehensive evaluation and detailed discussions with the medical team, Mr. He received CAR-T cell therapy with zevorcabtagene autoleucel (zevor-cel) in September 2025. His myeloma remains in complete remission, his strength is gradually returning, and he has resumed traveling with his wife and enjoying retirement. His story reflects the long treatment journey that many patients with relapsed or refractory multiple myeloma may face - from chemotherapy and autologous transplant to CAR-T - and the difference that advances in medicine, family support, and access to healthcare can make in everyday life.

Six years ago, soon after retiring, Mr. He (pseudonym) signed up for a piano class at a university for older adults. He was ready to enjoy a colorful new chapter of retirement. Then recurrent fevers, fatigue, and persistent bone pain began to worry his family. A comprehensive health check showed several abnormalities, and further hematology testing ultimately confirmed the diagnosis: IgG lambda multiple myeloma.

With his family by his side, Mr. He began treatment. In November 2020, he underwent an autologous hematopoietic stem cell transplant, but the disease did not go into remission. He then received a combination of targeted therapy, immunotherapy, and chemotherapy, which kept the disease stable for several years. By May 2025, however, myeloma-related markers that had long been controlled began to rise again, suggesting another relapse. By then, several drugs and treatment approaches had already provided limited benefit.

Just when options seemed to be running out, CAR-T cell therapy offered a new possibility. In September 2025, the medical team at GoBroad Shanghai Zhaxin Hospital treated Mr. He with CAR-T cell therapy using zevorcabtagene autoleucel (zevor-cel).

Now, more than eight months after treatment, his multiple myeloma remains in complete remission.

At last, he can enjoy the retirement he had once imagined - traveling with his wife, Mrs. Yang, visiting new places, and living a calm and fulfilling everyday life.

Mr. He and Mrs. Yang traveling together in late 2025

As both his longtime caregiver and a healthcare professional herself, Mrs. Yang has many reflections on the journey:

"My father was diagnosed with multiple myeloma in 1993, before he had even turned 70. Medical options were much more limited then, and he was unable to receive sufficiently effective treatment. His quality of life was very poor, and he suffered greatly from the disease.

So much has changed since then. With rapid advances in medicine in China, new drugs and treatment approaches continue to become available. Today, patients like my husband can not only receive standardized, effective treatment, but can also maintain a good quality of life during treatment - something that would have been difficult to imagine in the past.

That is why I want other people living with myeloma to keep believing that there is hope.

It is also worth mentioning that GoBroad Shanghai Zhaxin Hospital is one of the designated hospitals for CAR-T treatment under Shanghai's 'Huhuibao' supplementary health insurance program. This coverage greatly reduced the financial pressure on our family and made an otherwise very costly advanced therapy much more accessible and affordable.

We are deeply grateful for the progress in medical care, the support provided through healthcare policy, and the dedication of every member of the medical team at Zhaxin Hospital."

October 2025: Mr. and Mrs. He with Dr. Ying Jiang and Nurse Manager Xia Yan

- Patient Q&A -

Q1: Mrs. Yang, how was Mr. He's multiple myeloma first diagnosed?

Mrs. Yang: In April 2020, he suddenly began having recurrent fevers, usually a little above 38°C. At first, we thought it was a cold. The symptoms improved after a few days, but then the fever came back. He also began to feel some discomfort in his lower back. We did not know what was causing it or even which specialty to see, so we decided to start with a full health check.

That same day, the hospital called to tell me that several test results were abnormal and recommended that we see a hematologist for further evaluation. We were very worried and arranged for him to be admitted right away. The next morning, after PET-CT and other tests, he was diagnosed with multiple myeloma. Fortunately, it was identified relatively early. If we had waited another week or two, his disease markers might have worsened further.

Q2: Mr. He, what ultimately led you to choose GoBroad Shanghai Zhaxin Hospital?

Mr. He: After the diagnosis, I started chemotherapy. That year was extremely difficult. I spent more than half of each month either in the hospital or traveling back and forth for treatment. I was particularly sensitive to some chemotherapy drugs, and one side effect followed another - fever, diarrhea, rashes, and more. I felt miserable, yet the treatment response was still not what we had hoped for.

In November 2020, because the standard chemotherapy regimen had not worked well enough, I followed my doctor's recommendation and underwent an autologous hematopoietic stem cell transplant. My disease was not in complete remission before the transplant, and afterward the result was still not as expected. More discouragingly, within one or two months, the disease-related markers began to rise again. That period was very hard, both physically and emotionally.

When treatment seemed to have reached a dead end, we learned that Professor Chun Wang had extensive experience in relapsed and refractory hematologic diseases.

So in January 2022, we came to GoBroad Shanghai Zhaxin Hospital for further treatment.

After I arrived, Professor Wang adjusted my treatment based on my condition. He introduced targeted therapy combined with chemotherapy and also modified some of the medications I had not tolerated well before. Gradually, the disease stabilized, and symptoms such as fever and diarrhea became much less troublesome. Although some markers fluctuated again about a year later, the doctors adjusted my medications promptly based on each follow-up result, so overall the disease remained under control. I kept up with regular follow-up, monitored my results closely, and adjusted treatment when needed. That allowed me to maintain a reasonably good quality of life.

Then, at a follow-up visit in May 2025, the markers began to rise again, suggesting that the myeloma might be returning.

Q3: Mr. He, when the disease began to relapse again, how did you decide to proceed with CAR-T therapy using zevorcabtagene autoleucel (zevor-cel)?

Mr. He: Based on my condition, the medical team at Zhaxin Hospital recommended CAR-T as the most appropriate treatment option for me at that point. We had always trusted the team's decisions, but I still hesitated before making this one.

We had learned a little about CAR-T before. In my mind, it felt like the 'ultimate weapon.' Part of me wanted to wait and see whether medication could keep things under control a little longer. I hoped the markers might not rise too quickly.

But during the two months I hesitated, the abnormal markers climbed rapidly. My attending physician, Dr. Ying Jiang, understood my concerns and explained patiently: "You have already tried several previous treatment approaches, and repeating them may not work well. If we wait until the myeloma burden rises further before proceeding with CAR-T, the outcome may not be any better than treating earlier, and the side effects could also be greater."

The cost of CAR-T was another major reason we hesitated. Later, we learned that GoBroad Shanghai Zhaxin Hospital is a designated CAR-T treatment hospital under 'Huhuibao,' and that I met the reimbursement criteria for adults with relapsed or refractory multiple myeloma whose disease had progressed after at least three prior lines of therapy.

That coverage greatly reduced the financial burden of treatment and removed one of our biggest concerns.

Q4: Mr. He, you have experienced both an autologous stem cell transplant and CAR-T therapy. How did the two treatments feel different to you?

Mr. He: As another patient once shared, the overall experience of CAR-T felt much easier for me than the autologous transplant. I did not need to stay in a transplant isolation room. Instead, a protective laminar-flow canopy was placed over my hospital bed, and my family could remain nearby to care for me. That made a big difference psychologically.

After the CAR-T infusion, I had a high fever for two or three days, with the temperature rising above 39°C. But Dr. Jiang had prepared us for that in advance. She explained that the engineered T cells would enter the body and 'fight' the myeloma cells, so some discomfort could be expected along the way. Because I knew what might happen, the whole process felt relatively manageable and I was not frightened.

I was discharged successfully after about two weeks and only needed to return for regular follow-up. About three months after CAR-T, my strength had improved a great deal, and my wife and I even traveled to Guangzhou together.

Q5: Mrs. Yang, you have been by Mr. He's side throughout these years. What do you think matters most when caring for someone with multiple myeloma?

Mrs. Yang: Caring for someone with myeloma is a long-term commitment. Family caregivers first need to take care of their own mindset so they can better support the patient. Test results will inevitably go up and down from one follow-up to the next. I used to become very anxious whenever his results were not ideal. Once, a nurse manager saw how worried I was and came over to reassure me: "Let the doctors worry about the numbers. What you need to focus on is his meals, daily routine, and day-to-day care. Leave the medical decisions to the professionals." Those words lifted a huge weight from me.

As family caregivers, we should try not to exhaust ourselves by worrying constantly about every medical number. It is often better to put our energy into the parts of care that we can actually do well.

Q6: Mr. He, after everything you have been through, how has this illness changed the way you think about life?

Mr. He: Before I became ill, I had planned to sign up for a piano class at a university for older adults and finally pursue a dream I had carried since I was young. But before I ever got the chance to touch the keys, the illness arrived first. Life does not always follow our plans. Instead of always thinking about 'someday,' I would rather live each day in front of me as fully as I can.

I am especially grateful to my wife. Through all these years, she has stayed beside me, caring for me with patience and gentleness. What I want now is very simple: she loves traveling, so I go with her whenever I can. Even if we are in the same city and she goes out sightseeing while I rest at the hotel and wait for her to come back, I still feel at peace.

I do not spend much time thinking about the distant future anymore. If I can eat well today, walk around today, and the two of us can still sit together and talk, that is enough.

This illness taught me something important: life does not have to be perfect to feel complete. Sometimes, having 'just enough' is its own kind of happiness.