Hematologic Oncology

Defined composition CAR T cells directed against CD19 have potent anti-tumor activity in B cell malignancies, including acute lymphocytic leukemia.

After nearly 40 years with little in the way of drug development for the treatment of acute myeloid leukemia, four new drugs have been approved by the FDA in 2017 for AML, and several promising agents are in development.

Shaji K. Kumar, MD, discusses proper diagnosis, risk stratification, and personalized medicine for patients with newly-diagnosed multiple myeloma.

Ruben Mesa, chair of the Division of Hematology and Medical Oncology at Mayo Clinic, discusses the guideline updates in polycythemia vera and essential thrombocythemia.

Jane N. Winter, MD, professor of medicine, Division of Hematology/Oncology, Northwestern University, discusses response in follicular lymphoma.

In relapsed classical Hodgkin lymphoma, the era of therapies post-brentuximab vedotin is developing rapidly.

William G. Wierda, MD, PhD, discusses the continued importance of ibrutinib, the promise for novel combinations, and the impact this progress has had on sequencing for CLL.

Survival for patients with grade 1 to 2 follicular lymphoma is now measured in decades to coincide with improvements in therapy.

In the CALL-0603 study of 44 patients with first marrow-relapsed childhood acute lymphoblastic leukemia, the second complete remission rate was 72.7% for a chemotherapy regimen that included a reduced dose of idarubicin.

Craig Hofmeister, MD, associate professor, The Ohio State University Comprehensive Cancer Center, discusses the treatment of patients with newly diagnosed multiple myeloma.

Farrukh Awan, MBBS, associate professor, The Ohio State University Comprehensive Cancer Center, discusses venetoclax (Venclexta) in chronic lymphocytic leukemia.

The Japanese Ministry of Health, Labor and Welfare has approved the use of daratumumab (Darzalex) for the treatment of adults with relapsed/refractory multiple myeloma.

The FDA has awarded brentuximab vedotin (Adcetris) a breakthrough therapy designation for the first-line treatment of patients with classical Hodgkin lymphoma.

Chimeric antigen receptor T-cell therapy for hematological malignancies took a huge step forward this summer with the FDA approval of Novartis

Harry Erba, MD, PhD, reflects on the 4 approvals and their effect on the treatment of AML moving forward.

Guy Young, MD, discussed the use of anticoagulants in managing thromboembolic events in pediatric cancer.

Treatment with the BCL-2 inhibitor venetoclax (Venclexta) led to negative minimal residual disease (MRD) status in 40% of evaluable patients with relapsed/refractory chronic lymphocytic leukemia.

Some patients with mantle cell lymphoma can delay treatment without experiencing negative outcomes, according to findings from a population-based study.

Guy Young, MD, director, Hemostasis and Thrombosis Program, attending physician, Hematology, Oncology and Blood and Marrow Transplantation, Children’s Hospital Los Angeles, USC, discusses the occurrence of thromboembolic events in pediatric cancer.

Tisagenlecleucel (Kymriah) induced a complete remission with complete or incomplete hematologic recovery in 83% of pediatric, adolescent, and young adult patients with acute lymphoblastic lymphoma.

The effort to improve outcomes in pediatric acute lymphoblastic leukemia should follow insight provided by next-generation sequencing and appropriate use of minimal residual disease criteria.

The European Commission has approved midostaurin (Rydapt) for adults with newly diagnosed FLT3-positive acute myeloid leukemia and advanced systemic mastocytosis.

Treatment with the autologous anti-CD19 CAR T-cell therapy axicabtagene ciloleucel significantly improved outcomes in refractory non-Hodgkin lymphoma compared with standard therapies.

Patients with refractory chronic lymphocytic leukemia achieved a high-response rate with CD19-targeted CAR T-cell therapy JCAR014.

Patients who received maintenance therapy with rituximab (Rituxan) following autologous stem cell transplantation as treatment for mantle cell lymphoma had a survival advantage, according to results from a retrospective single-center study.