From the Journals

Ibrutinib stacks up well on safety in pooled analysis


 

FROM CLINICAL LYMPHOMA, MYELOMA & LEUKEMIA

Ibrutinib has a favorable safety profile in the treatment of chronic lymphocytic leukemia/small lymphocytic lymphoma (CLL/SLL) and mantle cell lymphoma (MCL), according to findings from a pooled analysis.

Susan M. O’Brien, MD, of the University of California, Irvine, and her colleagues reported pooled data from four randomized, controlled trials that included a 756 patients treated with ibrutinib and 749 patients who received a comparator drug. Patients were treated for either CLL/SLL or MCL, and safety was assessed by comparing crude and exposure-adjusted incidence rates of reported adverse events (AEs).

The comparator drugs included intravenous ofatumumab, oral chlorambucil, intravenous bendamustine plus rituximab, and intravenous temsirolimus.

While adverse event data have been published for each study analyzed, the researchers noted that the pooled analysis allows for an “in-depth assessment of the frequency and severity of both common AEs as well as additional AEs of clinical interest.”

Ibrutinib-treated patients had low rates of treatment discontinuation, compared with comparator-treatment patients (27% vs. 85%), the researchers reported in Clinical Lymphoma, Myeloma & Leukemia. Most discontinuations were caused by disease progression.

In terms of AEs, the types of events reported were similar among the drugs, with the three most common being infections, gastrointestinal disorders, and general disorders/administration-site conditions.

Diarrhea, muscle spasms, and arthralgia were reported more often among ibrutinib-treated patients. The prevalence of the most common all-grade AEs generally decreased over time with ibrutinib, peaking in the first 3 months of treatment. For serious AEs, only atrial fibrillation was higher with ibrutinib than comparator drugs when adjusted for exposure.

SOURCE: O’Brien SM et al. Clin Lymphoma Myeloma Leuk. 2018 Jun 27. doi: 10.1016/j.clml.2018.06.016.

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