Dr. Burke on POLARIX Data Examining a Polatuzumab Vedotin–Based Regimen in Newly Diagnosed DLBCL

John M. Burke, MD, associate chair of the Hematology Research Program for US Oncology and medical oncologist and hematologist at Rocky Mountain Cancer Centers, discusses findings from the phase 3 POLARIX trial (NCT03274492) in patients with newly diagnosed diffuse large B-cell lymphoma (DLBCL).

In the POLARIX trial, data of which were presented during the 2021 ASH Annual Meeting and Exposition, patients were randomized to receive polatuzumab vedotin-piiq (Polivy) plus R-CHP (rituximab [Rituxan], cyclophosphamide, doxorubicin, and prednisone; Pola-R-CHP) or R-CHOP (rituximab, cyclophosphamide, doxorubicin, vincristine, prednisone).

The polatuzumab vedotin–based regimen was found to improve several end points vs R-CHOP, including progression-free survival, event-free survival; the regimen also reduced the need for additional therapies, such as second-line chemotherapy, radiation therapy, or stem cell transplant, according to Burke. However, in the trial, Pola-R-CHP did not demonstrate an overall survival benefit vs R-CHOP, Burke explains.

The toxicity profile and adverse effects observed with Pola-R-CHP were similar to those observed with R-CHOP, Burke adds. As such, the polatuzumab vedotin regimen has the potential to be a new standard treatment for patients with newly diagnosed DLBCL, Burke concludes.