Designing a Safe, Fully Outpatient CAR T-Cell Program in the Community

This is the fourth blog post in a 6-part series recognizing the achievements of the 2026 ACCC Innovator Award winners before their in-depth sessions at the ACCC 43rd National Oncology Conference. Learn more about the innovations being recognized this year and those who pioneered them by joining ACCC in Boston, Massachusetts, from October 21-23, 2026.

Nationally, approximately one in five patients who qualify for chimeric antigen receptor (CAR) T-cell therapy never receive it due to geographic distance, travel burden, or limited availability at specialized inpatient centers. Recognizing a critical need in its community, Mary Bird Perkins Cancer Center in Baton Rouge, Louisiana, launched the region’s first fully outpatient CAR T-cell therapy program for select blood cancers, fundamentally redefining how advanced cellular therapies can be delivered safely outside of a hospital setting and earning the program a 2026 ACCC Innovator Award.

Traditionally, CAR T-cell therapy has required inpatient admission due to the risk of acute toxicities, such as cytokine release syndrome and immune effector cell–associated neurotoxicity syndrome. As a community-based outpatient cancer center without on-site apheresis services, emergency department access, hospital medicine, or intensive care unit resources, implementing outpatient CAR T required a comprehensive redesign of clinical workflows, monitoring systems, and escalation pathways.

Measurable impact has already been achieved through this innovation, as local patients can remain near their support systems, sleep in their own homes, and avoid prolonged hospital stays while receiving advanced, evidence-based care. Furthermore, the gains made in care coordination, workforce readiness, and quality governance have proven invaluable in enabling broader access to life-changing treatments and supporting patient-centered, value-based care models.

In anticipation of the ACCC 43rd National Oncology Conference this fall, ACCCBuzz spoke with Renea Austin-Duffin, MPA, FACCC, Vice President of Cancer Support and Outreach, and Andrew Dalovisio, MD, Director of the Myeloma, Lymphoma, and Cellular Therapy Program, to learn more about this initiative.

ACCCBuzz: How long has Mary Bird Perkins been an ACCC member? 

Austin-Duffin: We’ve been a member since 1987.

ACCCBuzz: What do you enjoy most about being an ACCC member? Are there specific programs, resources, and/or tools that you use at your cancer program? 

Austin-Duffin: We greatly appreciate the organization’s multidisciplinary approach, which brings together professionals from across the cancer care continuum to share knowledge, best practices, and innovative solutions. The educational programming is invaluable, providing timely insights on clinical, operational, and strategic issues affecting oncology care. 

We also appreciate the many opportunities to collaborate and learn from peers facing similar challenges. At our cancer program, we regularly utilize ACCC resources such as educational webinars, conferences, blogs, podcasts, and the Oncology Issues journal. These platforms provide practical tools, emerging trends, and real-world examples that help inform program development, operational improvements, and patient-centered care initiatives. The ability to both share experiences and learn from others across the country is one of the most valuable benefits of ACCC membership.

ACCCBuzz: Renea, as a member of the ACCC Executive Committee, can you briefly describe your path to this leadership role?

Austin-Duffin: I have been an active ACCC member for many years and regularly attend the national meetings. I have also presented at several of these meetings, including a 2024 team-based deep dive on Mary Bird Perkins’ partnership with a local employer to bring screening services and prevention education to the work site and a companion 2025 team-based deep dive about Mary Bird Perkins’ Prevention On-the-Go mobile screening program, including an implementation playbook.

I have also written for the Association’s journal, Oncology Issues, including an article about Mary Bird Perkins’ 2016 ACCC Innovator Award for its efforts to improve early detection of cancer for the medically underserved. It felt like a natural next step to elevate that engagement to the highest levels of the Association—ensuring that the voice and real-world experience of community cancer programs are not only represented, but actively inform strategy, decision-making, and the direction of our work.

ACCCBuzz: Your 2026 ACCC Innovator Award recognizes a bold rethinking of how advanced therapies can be delivered. What problem were you most motivated to solve when you began this work? 

Dr. Dalovisio: It comes down to access. For many of these novel therapies—especially CAR T and bispecific antibody therapies—only a small percentage of the patients who meet the indication for these drugs are actually able to receive them. There are a number of factors that play into that: insurance coverage, proximity to a cancer center, and a lack of general expertise in the oncology community. Addressing those problems one by one to allow all eligible patients to receive these treatments is important, because these therapies are not just mildly effective—we’re talking about curative treatments or inducing remissions lasting years. These drugs are very important, both from a medical perspective and a quality-of-life perspective.

ACCCBuzz: What is one aspect of your approach that you believe will make others think differently about delivering complex cancer care like CAR T-cell therapy in the community setting?

Dr. Dalovisio: There’s this impression that CAR T is intimidating because of the potential complications. And while those certainly can be severe, as a field, we have adapted well to managing those complications. Of course, there are still high-grade and refractory cases, but those are the exception by far. It’s important to me to demystify a lot of the reservations about CAR T and show other community cancer centers that they can administer this therapy safely in the outpatient setting. Although it does take a certain level of resource allocation and commitment, this program can be propped up in most centers within a one- to two-year period. As these drugs become first-line therapies and standards of care, this is an adaptation that community cancer centers will have to make to stay relevant and financially secure.

ACCCBuzz: It can be challenging for administrators and C-suite members to share a common language with clinicians and others who provide direct patient care. Can you share any tips you used to obtain buy-in and support for your innovation?

Dr. Dalovisio: I was very fortunate in that my institution approached me and asked what I needed to make this program possible. Many of our C-suite members have scientific backgrounds, making it easier to communicate about highly clinical topics. But not everyone has that at their institution. I think when you break the language down into clear terms about how this initiative will benefit patients, how it is already on its way to becoming a first-line treatment for a lot of malignancies, and how adapting to incorporate this therapy will be financially beneficial, leadership is very willing to understand and work to bring the idea to fruition. When you explain the numbers, the response rates, the cure rates—those data are highly motivating, particularly when you place it in the context of what we had to offer patients before. 

ACCCBuzz: Can you share a patient story that illustrates how this innovation changed the experience or outcome for someone receiving care—and why that moment has stayed with you?

Dr. Dalovisio: Our first CAR T patient in this program was a gentleman in his mid 40s who had young children and lived close to our cancer center. Without the option to be treated at Mary Bird Perkins, he would’ve had to upend his life for a month or more to seek treatment in Houston or New Orleans. Anyone who has young kids, pets, or loved ones nearby knows how much it means to be able to go home each night and sleep in their own bed. Not only did he have a positive clinical outcome from the CAR T, but being with his community played a huge part in his healing. Being able to offer that to our catchment area means a lot to patients and to us. 

ACCCBuzz: Your model places a meaningful role on caregivers and keeping patients close to home. Why is that so important to you, and how has it shaped the patient experience in your program?

Dr. Dalovisio: The simple acts of sleeping in your own bed, being with your spouse, your partner, your support structure, and having home-cooked meals are all incredibly important in healing and persevering through a difficult process. Our patients recognize that, and I think that’s why they gravitate toward us to receive treatment rather than traveling to larger academic centers.

To learn more about Mary Bird Perkins’ community-based, fully outpatient CAR T program, join the 2026 ACCC Innovator Award winners in Boston this October for the ACCC 43rd National Oncology Conference.