MCC Health wins $400,000 NIH grant for CAR-T symptom monitoring tool

MCC Health received a $400,000 NIH Phase I STTR grant to build WAYPOINT, a digital tool for tracking CAR-T side effects at home and alerting clinicians when patients need help. The project with Massachusetts General Hospital aims to reduce readmissions and improve recovery during the critical months after treatment.

Why it matters: - CAR-T therapy can save lives, but recovery often brings severe symptoms, rehospitalization, and caregiver strain. - WAYPOINT is designed to help patients report side effects from home and get faster care-team response during the first 60 days after treatment. - The grant could help fill a gap in post-CAR-T support that does not yet have a widely used digital monitoring system.

What happened: - MCC Health, Inc. won a $400,000 competitive NIH Phase I Small Business Technology Transfer grant. - The grant will fund development of WAYPOINT, a digital intervention for patients after chimeric antigen receptor T-cell therapy. - Massachusetts General Hospital co-principal investigator Anna Barata, PhD, will lead the clinical research. - MCC Health founder and CEO Daniella Landau called the award a chance to address an unmet need in CAR-T care.

The details: - WAYPOINT will prompt patients to report symptoms regularly and send real-time alerts to the care team when intervention is needed. - The platform will include original education content, psychosocial support, and symptom-management guidance developed with clinical input from Dr. Barata. - The program is intended for the critical recovery period after discharge, when patients and caregivers are expected to watch for side effects on their own. - Research led by Mass General Brigham investigators found that half of patients report severe physical symptoms in the first week after CAR-T treatment. - The same research found that four in 10 patients return to the hospital within 90 days. - MCC Health said patients often feel underprepared to recognize and manage side effects at home after discharge instructions end. - Electronic symptom monitoring has already shown benefits in solid tumor care, including lower symptom burden, better quality of life, fewer hospital visits, and longer survival in follow-up analysis. - The company said no comparable monitoring system currently exists for CAR-T recipients. - The program links to the MyCareCompass patient education platform, which MCC Health developed. - The company also said CAR-T use is expected to expand as approvals grow for solid tumors. - Cancer centers, health systems, and life sciences partners can contact Daniella Landau at dlandau@arches.health or visit more information. - WAYPOINT is also described as a digital intervention that helps patients monitor and manage symptoms at home during the first 90 days after CAR-T therapy. - The project includes a collaboration with clinical guidance from Massachusetts General Hospital.

Between the lines: - The grant gives MCC Health external validation for a care model that shifts support from the hospital to the home. - The project also reflects a broader push to use digital tools for post-treatment monitoring instead of relying on discharge handouts alone. - If the tool works as planned, it could lower readmissions and reduce the burden on caregivers while giving clinicians earlier warning signs.

What's next: - Under the two-year Phase I grant, MCC Health and Dr. Barata will refine WAYPOINT with CAR-T patients and clinicians. - The team will test usability and acceptance during the study period. - Phase II is expected to expand WAYPOINT to patients nationwide and measure effects on symptom burden, quality of life, and clinical outcomes. - The FAQ says WAYPOINT is not yet commercially available and the study runs through the end of August 2028.

The bottom line: - MCC Health is moving from patient education to active home monitoring for CAR-T recovery, backed by NIH funding and hospital research expertise.