Chronic Lymphocytic Leukemia/Small Lymphocytic Lymphoma

Ibrutinib remains a key treatment for relapsed chronic lymphocytic leukemia (CLL), but findings suggest that combining it with other therapies can improve response rates and may allow for treatment discontinuation in some patients.

Patients treated in community settings were more likely to be older, less likely to be White, and had worse survival rates, highlighting disparities in specialized cancer care.

A study showed that using measurable residual disease (MRD) to guide ibrutinib-venetoclax therapy significantly improved progression-free survival in chronic lymphocytic leukemia (CLL) compared with standard chemoimmunotherapy.

Research found that ibrutinib reduces red blood cell aggregation in patients with chronic lymphocytic leukemia (CLL), while obinutuzumab/venetoclax does not significantly alter blood viscosity.

New data suggest venetoclax may offset the negative prognostic impact of short telomeres in patients with chronic lymphocytic leukemia (CLL).

One study found most—but not all—patients with chronic lymphocytic leukemia disease progression while taking a Bruton tyrosine kinase inhibitor (BTKi) had a key mutation linked to resistance.

The long-term safety of ibrutinib was proven in patients with newly diagnosed or relapsed or refractory (R/R) chronic lymphocytic leukemia (CLL) and small lymphocytic lymphoma (SLL).

Quality-of-life (QOL) outcomes vary widely for patients receiving first-line treatment for chronic lymphocytic leukemia (CLL), according to research presented at the 2024 American Society of Hematology (ASH) meeting.

A third-generation chimeric antigen receptor (CAR) T-cell therapy yielded encouraging response rates and safety findings among patients with relapsed or refractory chronic lymphocytic leukemia (CLL).

This interview will appear in the January 2025 issue of Evidence-Based Oncology, our annual recap of the American Society of Hematology Meeting and Exposition. After this article went to press, the company announced its ticker symbol on the Nasdaq will change January 2, 2025.

This year’s most-read articles on chronic lymphocytic leukemia (CLL) and small lymphocytic lymphoma (SLL) explored treatment adherence patterns, patient symptom assessment, research on treatment efficacy, and more.

Secondary immunodeficiency disease (SID) status was associated with significantly higher risk for severe bacterial infections in adult patients with chronic lymphocytic leukemia (CLL)/small lymphocytic lymphoma (SLL).

The study offers insights on how to counteract resistance to Bruton tyrosine kinase (BTK) inhibitors.

Long-term data support the safety and efficacy of venetoclax (Venclexta) and obinutuzumab (Gazyva) in chronic lymphocytic leukemia (CLL), though questions remain about which patients would benefit most from the regimen.

Meaningful change thresholds for the EORTC Quality of Life Questionnaire in chronic lymphocytic leukemia (CLL) or small lymphocytic lymphoma (SLL) are: −11/+11 for symptom burden, −16/+16 for physical condition/fatigue, and −16/+13 for worries/fears.

Despite found associations, due to small sample sizes the researchers suggest readers interpret their findings with caution.

This multiyear follow-up of more than 3300 patients with relapsed/refractory chronic lymphocytic leukemia (R/R CLL) who received ibrutinib—the longest study of its kind—confirms the agent’s efficacy as a salvage treatment but reveals new information about its impact in different subpopulations with varying clinical characteristics.

The new report is an attempt to provide comprehensive safety data on the rapidly changing treatment landscape for relapsed or refractory chronic lymphocytic leukemia (CLL).

For patients with chronic lymphocytic leukemia (CLL) treated previously with venetoclax and Bruton’s tyrosine kinase inhibitors, many more trials are needed to pinpoint the best next steps

The venetoclax-based regimen was associated with an approximate $8000 decrease in costs compared with the continuous Bruton tyrosine kinase inhibitor treatment 6 months after the fixed-duration period.

These findings suggest that KIR2DS2-positive (KIR2DS2+) natural killer (NK) cells could be an attractive therapeutic target for in vivo strategies, although enhanced effector function is lost during ex vivo expansion needed for NK cell–based therapies, such as chimeric antigen receptor–NK cell treatment.

Although Bruton tyrosine kinase (BTK) inhibitor monotherapy in chronic lymphocytic leukemia (CLL) has been a game-changer, patients have significantly increased risks of infection, especially in the upper respiratory tract.

The long-term response rate for zanubrutinib was better than ibrutinib in patients with relapsed/refractory chronic lymphocytic leukemia (CLL) and small lymphocytic lymphoma (SLL).

A new study identifies potential immune profile differences in patients with chronic lymphocytic leukemia (CLL) that may lead to resistance after ibrutinib therapy.

The study found that the price tag for the second-generation Bruton tyrosine kinase inhibitor would need to be reduced by 30% in order to be cost-effective compared with bendamustine-rituximab (R-bendamustine) for these patients.

Patients with low-count chronic lymphocytic leukemia phenotype monoclonal B-cell lymphocytosis had a 1.86-fold greater risk of melanoma.

A comparison of the second-generation Bruton tyrosine kinase (BTK) inhibitor acalabrutinib to the first-generation ibrutinib shows the former had lower rates of adverse events in a real-world setting.

Most patients diagnosed with chronic-phase chronic myeloid leukemia (CP-CML) who achieved a deep molecular response on tyrosine kinase inhibitor (TKI) therapy were able to avoid relapse despite discontinuing therapy.

B-cell activating factor receptor chimeric antigen receptor (CAR) T-cell therapy caused cytotoxic effects on all chronic lymphocytic leukemia (CLL) cell lines.