Key clinical point : Compared with chemoimmunotherapy (CIT), Bruton tyrosine kinase inhibitor (BTKi) therapy combined with anti-CD20 antibody therapy improves clinical outcomes in patients with treatment-naive chronic lymphocytic leukemia (CLL) without causing increased toxicity.
Major finding: Patients receiving BTKi+anti-CD20 antibody vs CIT had significantly prolonged progression-free survival (hazard ratio 0.25; 95% CI 0.15-0.42) and higher objective response rates (risk ratio [RR] 1.16; 95% CI 1.13-1.20) and a comparable risk for grade ≥3 adverse events (RR 1.04; 95% CI 0.92-1.17).
Study details: The data come from a meta-analysis of four randomized controlled trials involving 1479 patients with treatment-naive CLL who had been randomized to receive CIT or BTKi+anti-CD20 antibody therapy.
Disclosures: This study was partly supported by the Ministry of Science and Technology, Taiwan, and Taipei Medical University, Taiwan. The authors declared no conflicts of interest.
Source: Nguyen TT et al. Efficacy and safety of Bruton tyrosine kinase inhibitor plus anti-CD20 antibody therapy compared with chemoimmunotherapy as front-line treatment for chronic lymphocytic leukemia: A systematic review and meta-analysis of randomized controlled trials. J Immunother. 2023 (May 23). doi: 10.1097/CJI.0000000000000471