Dr. Mead on the Utility of Second-Line Venetoclax/Rituximab in CLL

Monica D. Mead, MD, clinical instructor, Hematology and Oncology, University of California, Los Angeles, discusses the utility of venetoclax (Venclexta) in combination with rituximab (Rituxan) in the second-line setting for patients with chronic lymphocytic leukemia (CLL).

Not all patients with CLL receive the same frontline therapy; therefore, it is difficult to standardize second-line therapy, says Mead. However, patients who received fludarabine, cyclophosphamide, and rituximab (Rituxan) or bendamustine/rituximab could be considered for venetoclax/rituximab in the second-line setting rather than a BTK inhibitor, Mead explains.

Venetoclax/rituximab offers patients a time-limited treatment option, says Mead. Conversely, BTK inhibitors require indefinite dosing that can put more strain on a patient than the adverse effects associated with the therapy, Mead says. However, venetoclax/rituximab does not appear to confer significant or limiting toxicities and should be considered as second-line or salvage therapy in this patient population, concludes Mead.