John West, PhD, is the director of cellular therapy production at the UNC Lineberger Comprehensive Cancer Center Advanced Cellular Therapeutics Facility, which, among other things, produces CAR-T therapies to treat cancer at UNC Health.
West and his colleagues recently had a critical role in the Advanced Cellular Therapeutics Facility earning the Foundation for the Accreditation of Cellular Therapy (FACT) accreditation without any deficiency citations.
“Earning FACT accreditation is a major milestone for any manufacturing facility,” said Jonathan Serody, MD, the Elizabeth Thomas Professor of Medicine, Microbiology, and Immunology, chief of the Division of Hematology at UNC School of Medicine, and director of the UNC Medical Center’s Cellular Therapy Program. “This recognition reflects the dedication of our faculty and staff, as well as the rigor of our processes and procedures, which meet or exceed FACT’s stringent standards and governmental regulations.”
Here’s a few minutes with John West.
Tell us about your journey to this point in your career
I completed my PhD in biochemistry at N.C. State University in 2005. My work was focused on virus research, specifically the generation of vaccine candidates for alphaviruses.
I joined UNC in 2006 as a postdoctoral fellow in the lab of Blossom Damania, PhD, focusing on the immune response to an oncolytic herpesvirus called Kaposi sarcoma-associated herpesvirus (KSHV). I spent nine and half years in Damania’s lab and authored multiple papers that helped to elucidate pathways that KSHV manipulates to establish infection.
I joined the lab of Gianpietro Dotti, MD, and Barbara Savoldo, MD, PhD, in 2015 because it seemed to me a perfect combination of my PhD (virology) and my postdoctoral fellowship (cancer immunology). CAR-T technology requires the generation of a virus that can be introduced into a patient’s own T-cells, allowing the T-cells to target an antigen present on the surface of cancer cells and direct an attack against the cancer. I joined the lab with the mandate to produce virus in support of the CAR-T clinical program.
I was virus production manager from 2018-2020, at which point I moved to assistant director of cellular therapy production, overseeing both virus and CAR-T cell manufacturing, 2020-2023. I moved to my current position in 2023. I have overseen the growth of the facility from a four- to a 17-person operation with multiple specialized groups since August 2020. I am extremely proud of where the facility is at this point and would not be where I am without the experience and mentorship I had in my previous labs, and the support from Drs. Dotti and Savoldo and the cancer center as a whole in the past seven years.
Why did you decide to pursue a career in cancer, in particular your role as director of cellular therapy production?
I initially moved into cancer because I wanted my research to potentially impact patients. My PhD was focused on infectious diseases, but I felt cancer research was going to be more rewarding due to the translational aspect and the ability to treat patients.
What does your day-to-day look like as director?
Primarily, I oversee patient product manufacturing on a day-to-day basis, but I have my hands in all aspects of the management of the facility.
As a director, I rely a lot on my team to execute each of their tasks. That is what makes us successful as a unit. My daily goal is to keep everyone moving forward and not lose sight of the big picture and the impact we are having.
We’ve treated over 200 patients in my time at the facility in different roles, which is no small feat for an academic facility.
Why is serving this patient population important to you?
We are treating patients who are typically at a stage where their options are limited. I’ve lost family members to cancer, as have most people, and even if our products only provide limited additional time, that’s valuable. Knowing how valuable that would have been for the folks in my life, I can only imagine how valuable that is for any of our patients.
What is your most memorable moment in your career?
Successfully completing my first manufacturing of a clinical-grade virus for use in support of the CAR-T program.
What advice do you have for someone entering this line of work?
Use your passion to your advantage and don’t let failure get in the way of progress. As much as we would like, we cannot cure everyone, but we try to learn from the cases that are not successful to improve. In this line of work, the big picture (helping the patients) is what to keep in mind.
What was your very first job?
My very first job was stocking/pricing items at a locally owned outdoor/hardware store. I was 16 years old.
What helps keep you motivated?
Patient impact.
It is always possible to get caught up in day-to-day job duties, but reminding myself that what goes out the door here is going into a person suffering from cancer.
It might give them some short-term relief, some extra time with their family or bring long-term relief. Knowing that is really what drives me to continue to make the product and the facility better on a daily basis.