FDA Approvals in Relapsed/Refractory CLL Set up ”Difficult Choice”

When it comes to the treatment of patients with relapsed/refractory chronic lymphocytic leukemia (CLL), "within the last eight months or so, we have had some exciting new events," says Daniel A. Ermann, MD, a hematologist-oncologist and assistant professor at the University of Utah Huntsman Cancer Institute in Salt Lake City. The U.S. Food and Drug Administration approved pirtobrutinib for previously treated CLL in December 2023 and approved the CAR-T therapy lisocabtagene ciloleucel for relapsed/refractory disease in March 2024. These new options for patients with unmet needs present "a difficult choice, and it is a little bit of a balance," Dr. Ermann explains. He discusses key considerations for treatment selection with Robert A. Figlin, MD, the Steven Spielberg Family Chair in Hematology-Oncology at the Cedars-Sinai Cancer Center in Los Angeles.