Hematologic Oncology

Although new therapies have revolutionized the management of certain hematologic malignancies during the past 15 years, clinical trials currently under way hold the potential to yield new targeted agents and better treatment strategies.

Gail J. Roboz, MD, associate professor of medicine, director of the Leukemia Program at the Weill Medical College of Cornell University and the New York-Presbyterian Hospital in New York City, explains research into potential improvements to the standard treatment of AML.

Researchers are continuing to investigate TKIs to help manage patients with CML who either do not respond to initial therapy or relapse after subsequent treatment.

Renier J. Brentjens, MD, PhD, Leukemia Service, Memorial Sloan-Kettering Cancer Center, explains the process by which his laboratory at MSKCC genetically modifies immune cells to fight cancer.

Hagop M. Kantarjian, MD, from MD Anderson Cancer Center, discusses the optimal frontline therapy for patients with chronic phase chronic myelogenous leukemia.

Now that several effective agents are FDA-approved for the treatment of CML, it is important to ascertain whether a treatment is working, and if not, how to respond in terms of switching treatment.

Transplant remains the cornerstone of treatment for relapsed/refractory Hodgkin lymphoma, but some new approaches are on the horizon and may also prove to be valid options.

In early clinical trials, small-molecule inhibitors have demonstrated improvement in response rates in elderly patients with chronic lymphocytic leukemia.

The FDA has approved omacetaxine mepesuccinate for the treatment of adult patients with Philadelphia chromosome-positive CML who have progressed after treatment with at least two prior TKIs.

It is important for oncologists to monitor, design, and administer appropriate bone health treatments at the earliest stages for the 80% to 90% of patients with multiple myeloma who develop osteolytic bone lesions.

Dose-dense induction with high-dose chemotherapy/autologous stem-cell transplantation is reasonable for use as first-line treatment of transplantation-eligible patients with systemic peripheral T-cell lymphomas.

This fellow shares the insights he’s gained from his wife, a pediatric oncology nurse, and how they help in the care he provides.

Decitabine produced a higher response rate than standard therapies in older patients with newly diagnosed acute myeloid leukemia without major differences in safety.

Andrew D. Zelenetz, MD, PhD, from Memorial Sloan-Kettering Cancer Center, previews several trials that will likely be presented at the 54th annual ASH meeting.

Trastuzumab has demonstrated activity in patients with B-cell adult acute lymphocytic leukemia who exhibit evidence of upregulation of the HER2 receptor.

A new generation of proteasome inhibitors, immunomodulatory agents, and deacetylase inhibitors are currently being investigated in clinical trials to treat patients with relapsed or refractory multiple myeloma.

The FDA has approved bosutinib for the treatment of patients with Philadelphia chromosome-positive chronic myelogenous leukemia who are intolerant or who have become resistant to prior therapy.

Lenalidomide used continuously after autologous hematopoietic stem cell transplantation significantly prolonged the time to disease progression and overall survival in patients with multiple myeloma.

The FDA approved Marqibo to treat patients with Philadelphia chromosome-negative adult acute lymphoblastic leukemia following at least two relapses or failed treatment.

Ponatinib, an oral multikinase inhibitor, generated significant responses in more than 50% of patients with certain chronic myeloid leukemia subtypes.

Two separate clinical trials presented at ASCO 2012 suggest that carfilzomib would be a safe and effective alternative to bortezomib for the treatment of multiple myeloma, following progression.

Dr. Mathias Rummel, from the University Hospital Giessen in Germany, on the Bendamustine Chemical Structure

Bortezomib represented a major discovery in cancer research and has helped some patients achieve a complete pathological response and live longer.

The FDA approved carfilzomib for patients with multiple myeloma who have received at least two prior lines of therapy.

Antibodies directed against tumor cell antigens or overexpressed proteins are currently the fastest-growing class of targeted cancer therapeutics.