ASH 2011

A multicenter, Phase 2 continuation trial has shown that the positive overall response rate (ORR) seen in a Phase 1 trial evaluating lenalidomide + azacitidine combination therapy is substantiated, with good overall survival (OS), even among progressing patients, in a higher-risk myelodysplastic syndromes (MDS) population. The study was presented at the 53rd American Society of Hematology Annual Meeting and Exposition.

A study of two different strategies for managing patients with asymptomatic low-tumor-burden (LTB) follicular lymphoma (FL) found retreatment with rituximab at disease progression is as effective in managing the disease as ongoing maintenance therapy, results of RESORT, a Phase 3 Eastern Cooperative Oncology Group (ECOG) study, reported at the 53rd American Society of Hematology Annual Meeting and Exposition.

Lenalidomide-dexamethasone (Len-dex) induction therapy, followed by lenalidomide maintenance therapy, significantly prolonged time to progression (TTP), as compared to no treatment (standard of care), as per results of a Phase 3 randomized, multicenter trial of smoldering multiple myeloma (SMM) patients at high-risk of progression to symptomatic disease. The data was presented at the 53rd American Society of Hematology Annual Meeting and Exposition.

In a small Phase 2 study presented at the 53rd American Society of Hematology’s Annual Meeting and Exposition, once-daily prasugrel 5mg for 30 days showed some promise of decreasing pain in patients with sickle-cell disease (SCD).

Use of the pan-deacetylase inhibitor panobinostat in combination with bortezomib and dexamethasone is promising for patients with bortezomib-refractory MM, results PANORAMA 2, a single arm, Phase 2 study presented at the 53rd American Society of Hematology Annual Meeting and Exposition have found.

At the 53rd American Society of Hematology Annual Meeting and Exposition, Jorge E. Cortes, MD of the MD Anderson Cancer Center, Houston, TX, and colleagues presented 24-month follow-up data from the BELA Trial. The BELA trial evaluated the efficacy of bosutinib, an oral, dual competitive inhibitor of the Src and Abl tyrosine kinases, in newly diagnosed chronic phase chronic myeloid leukemia (CP-CML).

Siltuximab in combination with dexamethasone may partially overcome dexamethasone resistance in some cases of multiple myeloma (MM) refractory to prior dexamethasone-containing therapy, reported Peter M. Voorhees, MD, from the Lineberger Comprehensive Cancer Center, University of North Carolina, Chapel Hill, NC, and colleagues at the 53rd American Society of Hematology Annual Meeting and Exposition.

Final results of the international, multicenter, Phase 3 VISTA trial confirmed that after 5 years of follow-up, bortezomib-melphalan-prednisone (VMP) demonstrated a persistent, significant overall survival (OS) benefit versus melphalan-prednisone (MP)—a 13.3 median month increase—in patients with previously untreated multiple myeloma (MM) ineligible for high-dose therapy investigators reported at the 53rd American Society of Hematology Annual Meeting and Exposition.

The community-based, Phase 3b randomized, open-label, multicenter UPFRONT trial presented at the 53rd American Society of Hematology Annual Meeting and Exposition has found that three bortezomib-based regimens followed by weekly bortezomib maintenance therapy produced similar overall response rates (ORR), progression-free survival (PFS), and 1-year overall survival (OS) in elderly, newly diagnosed, transplant-ineligible multiple myeloma (MM) patients.

The alkylating agent bendamustine has some activity in heavily pretreated pediatric patients with relapsed or refractory acute lymphoblastic leukemia (ALL) but not in those with relapsed or refractory acute myeloid leukemia (AML), according to preliminary data presented at the 53rd Annual Meeting and Exposition of the American Society of Hematology.