Leukemia & Lymphoma

On October 18, 2017, Yescarta (axicabtagene ciloleucel; Kite Pharma) was approved by the US Food and Drug Administration (FDA) for the treatment of adults with certain types of relapsed or refractory large B-cell lymphoma after receiving 2 or more lines of systemic therapy; these types include DLBCL not otherwise specified, primary mediastinal large B-cell lymphoma, high-grade B-cell lymphoma, and DLBCL arising from follicular lymphoma.

These results make quizartinib the first FLT3 inhibitor to demonstrate such improvement over chemotherapy in this patient population.

With 5-year survival rates for Hodgkin lymphoma (HL) and non-Hodgkin lymphoma (NHL) at 86% and 71%, respectively, the number of lymphoma survivors is on the rise, but achieving long-term quality of life after treatment is completed remains an ongoing challenge.

Treatments targeting immune responses against solid tumors have led to dramatic improvements in patient outcomes, but the role for immunotherapy in the treatment of acute leukemia is still being defined.

After nearly 40 years of negligible drug development, 2017 saw the approval of 4 drugs by the FDA for the treatment of acute myeloid leukemia (AML).

On August 1, 2017, the FDA approved enasidenib (Idhifa), an isocitrate dehydrogenase-2 inhibitor, for the treatment of adults with relapsed or refractory acute myeloid leukemia (AML) who have the IDH2 genetic mutation.

The FDA, on August 3, 2017, approved a fixed combination daunorubicin plus cytarabine (Vyxeos) injection for the treatment of adults with 2 types of acute myeloid leukemia (AML)—newly diagnosed, therapy-related AML (t-AML) and AML with myelodysplasia-related changes (AML-MRC).

Tisagenlecleucel (Kymriah), a genetically modified chimeric antigen receptor (CAR) T-cell immunotherapy, was approved by the FDA on August 30, 2017, for the treatment of pediatric patients and young adults aged ≤25 years with relapsed or refractory B-cell acute lymphoblastic leukemia (ALL).

On September 1, 2017, the FDA approved gemtuzumab ozogamicin (Mylotarg) for the treatment of adults with newly diagnosed CD33-positive acute myeloid leukemia (AML), as well as patients aged ≥2 years with relapsed or refractory CD33-positive AML.

The authors explore the concept of perceived economic hardship and economic distress among a cohort of adult patients at least 6 months postdiagnosis of AML.