Dr Goy on Real-World Outcomes With CAR T-Cell Therapy in MCL

Andre Goy, MD, vice president, physician in chief, Oncology, Hackensack Meridian Health Oncology Care Transformation Services, chairman, chief physician officer, Lydia Pfund Chair for Lymphoma, Lymphoma Division, John Theurer Cancer Center, Hackensack University Medical Center, academic chairman, Oncology, Hackensack Meridian School of Medicine; professor, medicine, Georgetown University, discusses the implementation of CAR T-cell therapy in patients with relapsed/refractory mantle cell lymphoma (MCL), highlighting outcomes with these novel agents in the real-world patient population.

A pivotal aspect to glean from the 2023 ASH Annual Meeting is the abundance of real-world data that were presented, Goy begins. Although this trend has been observed in recent years, the magnitude of such data at the 2023 meeting notably underscores the efficacy of novel therapies, he states. Specifically, the discussion surrounding CAR T-cell therapy highlighted substantial evidence from real-world data, including response rates, complete response (CR) rates, durability outcomes, and survival outcomes that were comparable with those seen in clinical trials, Goy elucidates. Notably, findings with CAR T-cell therapy extend beyond clinical trial settings, a departure from the typical discordance observed between trial results with certain agents and their real-world effectiveness, he reports.

Furthermore, the absence of disparities in toxicity incidence between clinical trial and real-world populations is a significant finding, Goy expands. Despite some ambiguities in understanding the impact certain subsets of highly proliferative disease, the real-world data demonstrate that toxicities do not impact efficacy outcomes, he says. This finding emphasizes the importance of real-world evidence in informing clinical decision-making, Goy relays.

The significance of real-world data extends beyond CAR T-cell therapy, permeating various malignancies, including large-cell lymphoma, follicular lymphoma, MCL, and acute lymphoblastic leukemia, he continues. These findings provide invaluable insights into the shifting care and treatment delivery outcomes across different cancer types, Goy says. The breadth of real-world evidence showcased at the conference underscores its pivotal role in shaping clinical practice and advancing the MCL field’s understanding of treatment effectiveness across diverse patient populations and disease contexts, he concludes.