Andrew H. Wei, MBBS, PhD, of The Alfred Hospital, Melbourne, discusses phase III findings on oral azacitidine (CC-486), the first treatment used in the maintenance setting shown to improve both overall and disease-free survival in patients with acute myeloid leukemia that is in remission following induction chemotherapy (Abstract LBA-3).
Nitin Jain, MD, of The University of Texas MD Anderson Cancer Center, discusses findings from two studies showing that the combination of ibrutinib and venetoclax is an effective chemotherapy-free oral regimen for patients with high-risk, previously untreated chronic lymphocytic leukemia (Abstract 34).
Mhairi Copland, PhD, MB BChir, of the University of Glasgow, discusses results of a study on the combination of ponatinib and fludarabine, cytarabine, idarubicin, and G-CSF for patients with blast phase chronic myeloid leukemia, a rare complication with a poor outcome (Abstract 497).
Ilaria Iacobucci, PhD, of St. Jude Children’s Research Hospital, discusses her work to more accurately define mutation subtypes in acute myeloid leukemia and myelodysplastic syndromes, as well as the implications for diagnosis, prognosis, and treatment (Abstract LBA-4 ).
Tait D. Shanafelt, MD, of Stanford University, discusses extended follow-up data that show ibrutinib plus rituximab improved clinical outcomes vs the standard therapy of fludarabine/cyclophosphamide/ rituximab in younger patients with previously untreated chronic lymphocytic leukemia (Abstract 33).
Patrick A. Brown, MD, of Johns Hopkins University, discusses phase III findings from a Children’s Oncology Group Study showing that blinatumomab was superior to chemotherapy in terms of efficacy and tolerability for young patients as a post-reinduction therapy in the setting of high- and intermediate-risk first relapse of B-cell acute lymphoblastic leukemia (Abstract LBA-1).
