Hagop Kantarjian, MD, of The University of Texas MD Anderson Cancer Center, offers his thoughts on abstract 379, “BLAST: A Confirmatory, Single-Arm, Phase II Study of Blinatumomab, a Bispecific T-Cell Engager (BiTE) Antibody Construct, in Patients With Minimal Residual Disease B-Precursor Acute Lymphoblastic Leukemia,” and abstract 3704, “An Evaluation of Molecular Response in a Phase II Open-Label, Multicenter Confirmatory Study in Patients With Relapsed/Refractory B-Precursor Acute Lymphoblastic Leukemia Receiving Treatment With the BiTE Antibody Construct Blinatumomab,” presented by Nicola Gökbuget, MD.
Bertrand Coiffier, MD, PhD, of Centre Hospitalier Lyon-Sud, offers his thoughts on abstract 146, “Rituximab Maintenance vs Wait and Watch After Four Courses of R-DHAP Followed By Autologous Stem Cell Transplantation in Previously Untreated Young Patients With Mantle Cell Lymphoma: First Interim Analysis of the Phase III Prospective LyMa Trial, a Lysa Study,” presented by Steven Le Gouill, MD, PhD.
Sagar Lonial, MD, of Winship Cancer Institute, offers his thoughts on abstract 79, “Carfilzomib, Lenalidomide, and Dexamethasone vs Lenalidomide and Dexamethasone in Patients With Relapsed Multiple Myeloma: Interim Results From ASPIRE, a Randomized, Open-Label, Multicenter Phase III Study,” presented by A. Keith Stewart, MD.
James O. Armitage, MD, FACP, FRCP, of the University of Nebraska Medical Center, and Richard M. Stone, MD of the Dana-Farber Cancer Institute, discuss three clinical trials: different doses of daunorubicin for AML; comparing azacitidine plus lenolidomide to vorinostat vs azacitidine monotherapy in MDS and CMML; and sorafenib vs placebo in addition to standard treatment for AML.
Ayalew Tefferi, MD, of the Mayo Clinic, on abstract 403, “A Compendium of Cytogenetic Abnormalities in Myelofibrosis: Molecular and Phenotypic Correlates in 826 Patients;” abstract 406, “Integration of Mutations and Karyotype Towards a Genetics-Based Prognostic Scoring System (GPSS) for Primary Myelofibrosis;” and abstract 405, “Mutation-Enhanced International Prognostic Scoring System (MIPSS) for Primary Myelofibrosis: An AGIMM & IWG-MRT Project.”