Dr. Siddiqi on CAR T-Cell Therapy in Relapsed/Refractory CLL/SLL

Tanya Siddiqi, MD, a hematologist/oncologist at City of Hope in Duarte, CA, discusses the phase I/II TRANSCEND CLL 004 trial, which evaluated the efficacy of anti-CD19 CAR T cells in patients with relapsed/refractory chronic lymphocytic leukemia (CLL) or small lymphocytic lymphoma (SLL).

Patients who have relapsed/refractory CLL or SLL and fail ibrutinib (Imbruvica) or venetoclax (Venclexta) have an unmet need for appropriate therapy, says Siddiqi.

The TRANSCEND CLL 004 trial, an open-label, multicenter study, enrolled patients who had received ≥2 lines of therapy, including BTK inhibitors, to receive the investigational CAR T-cell product, lisocabtagene maraleucel (JCAR017). The best overall response rate in 15 evaluable patients was 87%, with 7 patients (47%) achieving complete response.

Eradication of minimal residual disease in the blood was also seen in 67% of patients by day 30, making this an excellent option for this patient population, Siddiqi concludes.

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