Lydia Scarfò, MD from the Università Vita-Salute San Raffaele in Milano, Italy presented data at the recent December ASH 2022 conference on a study that reviewed the effectiveness of chimeric antigen receptor (CAR) T-cell therapy for relapsed/refractory and high-risk CLL patients for which BTK inhibitors and BCL2 inhibitors had not worked.
The motivation to conduct another CAR T-cell study for CLL patients came after seeing that 2 of the 3 CLL patients treated with CAR-T cell therapy 10 years ago, still have a complete response to the treatment, remain progression-free, and still have the anti-CD19 CAR T-cells in their immune systems working to destroy any new CLL cells.
Although those patients had not been exposed to BTK inhibitors like ibrutinib or BCL2 inhibitors like venetoclax due to different treatment options at the time, they had exhausted all alternative treatment options and found treatment success. CAR T-cell therapy may be a promising option for current CLL patients that have exhausted treatment options of BTK and BCL2 inhibitors.
The treatment consisted of patients receiving a CD19-directed CAR T-cell therapy called lisocabtagene maraleucel (liso-cel) that consisted of equal target doses of CD8+ and CD4+ T cells.
Patients that exhibited uMRD in both the peripheral blood and bone marrow had the longest progression-free survival (PFS), indicating that achieving uMRD might be a valuable goal in this setting and may predict the long-term efficacy of CAR T-cells.
The study is also evaluating treating patients with liso-cel + ibrutinib or liso-cel + venetoclax.
The results of the above studies suggest that CAR T-cell therapy may be a viable treatment option for relapsed/refractory and high-risk CLL patients. Achieving uMRD may be a valuable goal in this setting and may predict the long-term efficacy of CAR T-cells. Combination therapies may also be effective in treating this patient population. These findings provide hope for CLL patients that have few treatment options, and future studies will further define the role of CAR T-cell therapy for CLL.
To review enrolling in a CAR T-cell study, talk with your CLL specialist about options that fit your type of CLL. Recruiting clinical trials are also accessible here: clinicaltrials.gov.
Lydia Scarfò, MD from the Università Vita-Salute San Raffaele in Milano, Italy presented data at the recent December ASH 2022 conference on a study that reviewed the effectiveness of chimeric antigen receptor (CAR) T-cell therapy for relapsed/refractory and high-risk CLL patients for which BTK inhibitors and BCL2 inhibitors had not worked.
The motivation to conduct another CAR T-cell study for CLL patients came after seeing that 2 of the 3 CLL patients treated with CAR-T cell therapy 10 years ago, still have a complete response to the treatment, remain progression-free, and still have the anti-CD19 CAR T-cells in their immune systems working to destroy any new CLL cells.
Although those patients had not been exposed to BTK inhibitors like ibrutinib or BCL2 inhibitors like venetoclax due to different treatment options at the time, they had exhausted all alternative treatment options and found treatment success. CAR T-cell therapy may be a promising option for current CLL patients that have exhausted treatment options of BTK and BCL2 inhibitors.
The treatment consisted of patients receiving a CD19-directed CAR T-cell therapy called lisocabtagene maraleucel (liso-cel) that consisted of equal target doses of CD8+ and CD4+ T cells.
Patients that exhibited uMRD in both the peripheral blood and bone marrow had the longest progression-free survival (PFS), indicating that achieving uMRD might be a valuable goal in this setting and may predict the long-term efficacy of CAR T-cells.
The study is also evaluating treating patients with liso-cel + ibrutinib or liso-cel + venetoclax.
The results of the above studies suggest that CAR T-cell therapy may be a viable treatment option for relapsed/refractory and high-risk CLL patients. Achieving uMRD may be a valuable goal in this setting and may predict the long-term efficacy of CAR T-cells. Combination therapies may also be effective in treating this patient population. These findings provide hope for CLL patients that have few treatment options, and future studies will further define the role of CAR T-cell therapy for CLL.
To review enrolling in a CAR T-cell study, talk with your CLL specialist about options that fit your type of CLL. Recruiting clinical trials are also accessible here: clinicaltrials.gov.
about the author
Megan Heaps
Megan joined HealthTree in 2022. As a writer and the daughter of a blood cancer patient, she is dedicated to helping patients and their caregivers understand the various aspects of their disease. This understanding enables them to better advocate for themselves and improve their treatment outcomes. In her spare time, she enjoys spending time with her family.