Dr. Alkharabsheh on Ongoing Research Efforts Examining Novel Combos in MCL

Omar Alkharabsheh, MD, a medical oncologist and hematologist, and an assistant professor of Interdisciplinary Clinical Oncology at the USA College of Medicine, discusses ongoing research efforts examining combination therapies in patients with mantle cell lymphoma (MCL).

More data from trials with combination therapies in MCL are needed, such as BTK inhibitors and BCL-2 inhibitors, which have also been examined in trials for chronic lymphocytic leukemia, Alkharabsheh says. Additionally, investigators need to identify whether these combinations will elicit different responses and better outcomes in this population, Alkharabsheh explains.

However, combination regimens are not a one-size-fits-all approach due to the heterogeneous nature of MCL. If the patient has high proliferative disease, high Ki-67, or a blastoid disease variant, a chemotherapy-free regimen may require more time before inducing remission or control of the aggressive disease, Alkharabsheh says. 

Chemotherapy continues to exist as the backbone of treatment in MCL; however, it is important to understand which agents to combine, as well as the best strategy to combine them to achieve optimal responses and outcomes, Alkharabsheh concludes.