Dr. Shah on Options for Ibrutinib-Intolerant Patients With MCL

Bijal D. Shah, MD, medical oncology, Moffitt Cancer Center, discusses a therapeutic option on the horizon for patients with mantle cell lymphoma (MCL) who are intolerant to ibrutinib (Imbruvica).

Shah poses the question: how are researchers going to succeed in this space of MCL in ibrutinib-intolerant patients? Though ibrutinib can be efficacious in select patients, it is a therapeutic challenge for patients who do not respond or in intolerant to the BTK inhibitor.

This is where chimeric antigen receptor (CAR) T-cell therapy has a very important role to play, Shah explains. This is being explored in a clinical trial by Kite Pharma, which is enrolling patients with MCL who are ibrutinib-intolerant. Thus far, there is very encouraging activity, he adds.