Dr. Hamlin on the Significance of the ZUMA-I Trial

Paul A. Hamlin, MD, chief, Basking Ridge Medical Oncology Service, Memorial Sloan Kettering Cancer Center, discusses the importance of the ZUMA-I trial results in the field of B-cell lymphoma.

One of the big stories in diffuse large B-cell lymphoma that came out of the 2017 ASH Annual Meeting was the use of CAR T cells. CAR T-cell therapy have been shown to be active in patients with relapsed large cell lymphoma and induce meaningful response rates.

Updated data from the 2017 ASH Annual Meeting showed that patients can achieve durable remissions. This follow-up data, now approaching 1.5 years, is an important landmark in large cell lymphoma. Typically, the first 18 months are when events happen, especially in the upfront setting. In the relapsed setting, it’s even sooner. In the trial, about 30% to 40% of patients who responded to CAR T-cell therapy have maintained their response.