CAR-T logistics gaps in airport handling and visibility highlighted at GPLS 2026

The article reports from the ninth Global Pharma Logistics Summit (GPLS) 2026 in Mumbai on October 9, where a panel discussed biopharma supply chains. Shirish Arya of ImmunoACT said the company has treated 1,000 patients, with no logistics failures. CAR-T therapy involves collecting patient cells, shipping them within 24 hours at 2–8°C to a lab, manufacturing for 7–8 days, quality testing about 10 days at -80°C, and returning the therapy at -80°C around day 18. ImmunoACT runs one lab in Mumbai, receiving samples from about 150 hospitals across India, and works with Marken as primary logistics partner.

Mukesh Kumar Regar of Immuneel Therapeutics described using dry runs to rehearse routes before first shipment, with contingency plans. They use tilt indicators and work with airlines to avoid X-ray screening that can destroy products, and track chain of identity and custody. A case from the Middle East moved from collection on Sunday to flight out of Oman Monday and clearance in India the next day, within 48 hours. Manoj Singh of MSN Air Service identified five airport risk stages: acceptance, offloading/staging, build-up, move to aircraft, and airside. He said the main gap is accountability between control environments, and proposed a single owner for time, temperature, and visibility data.

Arya noted blind trust outside the company's controlled environment and called for validated studies from logistics providers. Shirbhayye of Aragen Life Sciences said biologics supply chains face sensitivity to temperature, air, light, and physical stress, with 90–95% of materials imported. Backorders for items like single-use bioreactors and chromatography resins can run 6–9 months, versus 2–3 months for global competitors, causing lost projects. He cited an example where a strike at a European airport prevented cold integrity material refill, and a data logger recorded an excursion. ImmunoACT plans clinical trials in Mexico and South Africa, with talks for Saudi Arabia, Turkey, and other Middle Eastern countries, which would mean more live tissue crossing borders.