Dr. Nowakowski on the Rationale for Reevaluating Enzastaurin in DLBCL

Grzegorz S. Nowakowski, MD, associate professor of medicine and oncology, consultant, Division of Hematology, Department of Internal Medicine, Mayo Clinic, discusses the rationale for reevaluating the PCKß inhibitor enzastaurin (DB102) in diffuse large B-cell lymphoma (DLBCL).

The ongoing, randomized phase 3 ENGINE trial is evaluating the efficacy of standard-of-care rituximab (Rituxan) plus cyclophosphamide, doxorubicin hydrochloride, vincristine sulfate, and prednisone (R-CHOP) in combination with enzastaurin or placebo as frontline treatment for patients with high-risk Denovo Genomic Marker 1 (DGM1)–positive DLBCL.

In the past, data from 2 negative studies in DLBCL looking at enzastaurin in the maintenance setting and in combination with R-CHOP for patients with intermediate- or high-risk DLBCL were presented, says Nowakowski.

However, data from subset analyses suggested that the presence of the biomarker DGM1 may be associated with increased benefit from enzastaurin, explains Nowakowski. 

As such, the objective of the ENGINE study is to reevaluate enzastaurin with novel, up-to-date technology to determine its potential efficacy in DLBCL, Nowkowski concludes.