Key clinical point : The addition of venetoclax to ibrutinib treatment led to a high rate of undetectable measurable residual disease with 10 –4 sensitivity (U-MRD4) in the bone marrow (BM) in high-risk patients with chronic lymphocytic leukemia (CLL).
Major finding: Adding venetoclax to ibrutinib therapy led to a cumulative BM U-MRD4 rate of 73%. BM U-MRD4 was achieved by 71% of patients after venetoclax therapy completion and by 38% and 57% of patients after 6 and 12 cycles, respectively.
Study details: This phase 2 study included 45 patients with CLL and detectable disease (≥0.01% measurable residual disease in BM) treated with ibrutinib for ≥12 months who had ≥1 high-risk feature for disease progression and received combined treatment with ibrutinib (previously tolerated dose) and venetoclax (escalated to 400 mg once daily) for ≤24 cycles.
Disclosures: This study was funded by AbbVie. Some authors declared serving as consultants or on speaker’s bureaus for or receiving advisory board or consulting honoraria or research support from AbbVie and others.
Source: Thompson PA et al. Venetoclax consolidation in high-risk CLL treated with ibrutinib for ≥1 year achieves a high rate of undetectable MRD. Leukemia. 2023 (May 3). Doi: 10.1038/s41375-023-01901-4