Doubling Down for Durable Remission in Chronic Lymphocytic Leukemia

Front-line therapy with ibrutinib–venetoclax has been shown to outperform standard chemotherapy — fludarabine, cyclophosphamide, and rituximab (FCR) — in patients with chronic lymphocytic leukemia (CLL). Now, investigators report long-term outcomes among nearly 900 patients with previously untreated CLL and no del(17p) who were randomized to receive ibrutinib–venetoclax, ibrutinib alone, or FCR. The ibrutinib-containing regimens were continued for up to 6 years unless toxicity or progression occurred or the patient qualified for treatment discontinuation based on undetectable measurable residual disease (MRD) in bone marrow.