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Cheson BD, Sharman JP. Current Approaches and Novel New Agents in the Treatment of Chronic Lymphocytic Leukemia. JCO Oncol Pract 2024:OP2300770. [PMID: 38848511 DOI: 10.1200/op.23.00770] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 11/29/2023] [Revised: 04/04/2024] [Accepted: 04/16/2024] [Indexed: 06/09/2024] Open
Abstract
The treatment of CLL has evolved from traditional chemoimmunotherapy (CIT) to an increasing number of targeted and biologic approaches. Randomized trials have demonstrated superiority of covalent bruton tyrosine kinase inhibitors (cBTKis) over CIT, and second-generation compounds such as acalabrutinib and zanubrutinib appear to have a more favorable efficacy/safety profile than ibrutinib. The noncovalent BTKi, pirtobrutinib, has shown impressive activity after failure of the cBTKis and is quite tolerable. The Bcl-2 inhibitor venetoclax plus a CD20, generally obinutuzumab, provides a high level of efficacy as initial treatment or after failure on a cBTKi, with many patients achieving a state of undetectable minimal residual disease. Promising novel approaches include BTK degraders, bispecific antibodies, and chimeric antigen receptor T-cell (CAR-T)-cell therapy. What is clear is that CIT is archaic, and current and future targeted approaches will continue to improve the outcome for patients with chronic lymphocytic leukemia.
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Affiliation(s)
| | - Jeff P Sharman
- Willamette Valley Cancer Institute, Medical Director of Hematology Research: Sara Cannon, Eugene, OR
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Navrkalova V, Plevova K, Radova L, Porc J, Pal K, Malcikova J, Pavlova S, Doubek M, Panovska A, Kotaskova J, Pospisilova S. Integrative NGS testing reveals clonal dynamics of adverse genomic defects contributing to a natural progression in treatment-naïve CLL patients. Br J Haematol 2024; 204:240-249. [PMID: 38062779 DOI: 10.1111/bjh.19191] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 07/25/2023] [Revised: 10/17/2023] [Accepted: 10/25/2023] [Indexed: 01/11/2024]
Abstract
Large-scale next-generation sequencing (NGS) studies revealed extensive genetic heterogeneity, driving a highly variable clinical course of chronic lymphocytic leukaemia (CLL). The evolution of subclonal populations contributes to diverse therapy responses and disease refractoriness. Besides, the dynamics and impact of subpopulations before therapy initiation are not well understood. We examined changes in genomic defects in serial samples of 100 untreated CLL patients, spanning from indolent to aggressive disease. A comprehensive NGS panel LYNX, which provides targeted mutational analysis and genome-wide chromosomal defect assessment, was employed. We observed dynamic changes in the composition and/or proportion of genomic aberrations in most patients (62%). Clonal evolution of gene variants prevailed over the chromosomal alterations. Unsupervised clustering based on aberration dynamics revealed four groups of patients with different clinical behaviour. An adverse cluster was associated with fast progression and early therapy need, characterized by the expansion of TP53 defects, ATM mutations, and 18p- alongside dynamic SF3B1 mutations. Our results show that clonal evolution is active even without therapy pressure and that repeated genetic testing can be clinically relevant during long-term patient monitoring. Moreover, integrative NGS testing contributes to the consolidated evaluation of results and accurate assessment of individual patient prognosis.
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Affiliation(s)
- Veronika Navrkalova
- Department of Internal Medicine - Hematology and Oncology, University Hospital Brno and Faculty of Medicine, Masaryk University, Brno, Czech Republic
- Center of Molecular Medicine, CEITEC-Central European Institute of Technology, Masaryk University, Brno, Czech Republic
- Department of Medical Genetics and Genomics, Faculty of Medicine, Masaryk University and University Hospital Brno, Brno, Czech Republic
| | - Karla Plevova
- Department of Internal Medicine - Hematology and Oncology, University Hospital Brno and Faculty of Medicine, Masaryk University, Brno, Czech Republic
- Center of Molecular Medicine, CEITEC-Central European Institute of Technology, Masaryk University, Brno, Czech Republic
- Department of Medical Genetics and Genomics, Faculty of Medicine, Masaryk University and University Hospital Brno, Brno, Czech Republic
| | - Lenka Radova
- Center of Molecular Medicine, CEITEC-Central European Institute of Technology, Masaryk University, Brno, Czech Republic
| | - Jakub Porc
- Center of Molecular Medicine, CEITEC-Central European Institute of Technology, Masaryk University, Brno, Czech Republic
- Department of Medical Genetics and Genomics, Faculty of Medicine, Masaryk University and University Hospital Brno, Brno, Czech Republic
| | - Karol Pal
- Center of Molecular Medicine, CEITEC-Central European Institute of Technology, Masaryk University, Brno, Czech Republic
| | - Jitka Malcikova
- Department of Internal Medicine - Hematology and Oncology, University Hospital Brno and Faculty of Medicine, Masaryk University, Brno, Czech Republic
- Center of Molecular Medicine, CEITEC-Central European Institute of Technology, Masaryk University, Brno, Czech Republic
| | - Sarka Pavlova
- Department of Internal Medicine - Hematology and Oncology, University Hospital Brno and Faculty of Medicine, Masaryk University, Brno, Czech Republic
- Center of Molecular Medicine, CEITEC-Central European Institute of Technology, Masaryk University, Brno, Czech Republic
| | - Michael Doubek
- Department of Internal Medicine - Hematology and Oncology, University Hospital Brno and Faculty of Medicine, Masaryk University, Brno, Czech Republic
- Center of Molecular Medicine, CEITEC-Central European Institute of Technology, Masaryk University, Brno, Czech Republic
- Department of Medical Genetics and Genomics, Faculty of Medicine, Masaryk University and University Hospital Brno, Brno, Czech Republic
| | - Anna Panovska
- Department of Internal Medicine - Hematology and Oncology, University Hospital Brno and Faculty of Medicine, Masaryk University, Brno, Czech Republic
| | - Jana Kotaskova
- Department of Internal Medicine - Hematology and Oncology, University Hospital Brno and Faculty of Medicine, Masaryk University, Brno, Czech Republic
- Center of Molecular Medicine, CEITEC-Central European Institute of Technology, Masaryk University, Brno, Czech Republic
- Department of Medical Genetics and Genomics, Faculty of Medicine, Masaryk University and University Hospital Brno, Brno, Czech Republic
| | - Sarka Pospisilova
- Department of Internal Medicine - Hematology and Oncology, University Hospital Brno and Faculty of Medicine, Masaryk University, Brno, Czech Republic
- Center of Molecular Medicine, CEITEC-Central European Institute of Technology, Masaryk University, Brno, Czech Republic
- Department of Medical Genetics and Genomics, Faculty of Medicine, Masaryk University and University Hospital Brno, Brno, Czech Republic
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Kang S, Ahn IE. Prognostic Markers in the Era of Targeted Therapies. Acta Haematol 2023; 147:33-46. [PMID: 37703841 DOI: 10.1159/000533704] [Citation(s) in RCA: 2] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 04/16/2023] [Accepted: 08/18/2023] [Indexed: 09/15/2023]
Abstract
BACKGROUND Small molecules targeting Bruton's tyrosine kinase (BTK) and B-cell lymphoma-2 have become the standard of care for the treatment of chronic lymphocytic leukemia (CLL), replacing chemoimmunotherapy (CIT) in most clinical settings. Ongoing trials explore targeted combinations and minimal residual disease-driven treatment cessation. These dramatic shifts in the current and upcoming treatment landscape of CLL raise the need to reevaluate existing prognostic markers and develop novel ones. SUMMARY This review examines prognostic markers in CLL patients treated with standard and investigational targeted therapies. Specifically, initial treatment of TP53 aberrant patients with a BTK inhibitor can achieve 70% progression-free survival (PFS) at 5 years, outperforming the 15% 5-year PFS with a CIT regimen containing fludarabine, cyclophosphamide, and rituximab (FCR). The prognostic implications of the immunoglobulin heavy chain variable gene (IGHV) mutation status have also changed. Unmutated IGHV is associated with inferior PFS and overall survival after FCR and inferior PFS with fixed-duration therapy with venetoclax and anti-CD20 monoclonal antibody but not with continuous BTK inhibitor treatment. KEY MESSAGES (1) Genetic variables (e.g., TP53 aberration, IGHV mutation, complex karyotype) have a prognostic significance in CLL patients treated with targeted therapy. (2) Understanding the prognostic and predictive values of these markers is critical for the development of a risk-adapted treatment strategy in CLL.
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Affiliation(s)
- Sorang Kang
- College of Medicine, Catholic University of Korea, Seoul, Republic of Korea
| | - Inhye E Ahn
- Dana-Farber Cancer Institute, Boston, Massachusetts, USA
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