Dr. Wang on the ZUMA-2 Trial in Relapsed/Refractory MCL

Michael Wang, MD, professor in the Department of Lymphoma and Myeloma at The University of Texas MD Anderson Cancer Center, discusses the results of the phase II ZUMA-2 trial in relapsed/refractory mantle cell lymphoma (MCL).

The investigational CAR T-cell therapy KTE-X19 demonstrated significant and durable responses in heavily pretreated patients with MCL. There is a large need for novel therapies in this space as these patients have exhausted most available options, explains Wang.

Initial results disclosed in the trial abstract showed an overall response rate (ORR) of 86%, and a complete remission (CR) rate of 57% among 28 of 60 patients treated with KTE-X19.

At a median follow-up of 12.3 months, updated results which were presented at the 2019 ASH Annual Meeting showed an ORR of 93%, and a CR rate of 67% after a single infusion of KTE-X19. Based on the findings from the trial, a biologics license application for KTE-X19 was submitted to the FDA for the treatment of adult patients with relapsed/refractory MCL.

The trial is ongoing, and investigators hope to see sustained remission durations with longer follow-up, concludes Wang.