Dr. Ryan on the Investigation of Ibrutinib Plus Obinutuzumab in Relapsed/Refractory CLL

Christine Ryan, MD, hematology/oncology fellow, the Department of Medical Oncology, the Dana-Farber Cancer Institute, discusses the investigation of ibrutinib (Imbruvica) plus obinutuzumab (Gazyva) in relapsed/refractory chronic lymphocytic leukemia (CLL).

Though ibrutinib plus obinutuzumab is approved by the FDA as a frontline therapy for CLL, minimal data have been gathered for the combination in the relapsed/refractory setting, Ryan says. Since ibrutinib monotherapy rarely leads to a complete response in relapsed/refractory CLL, a phase 1b trial (NCT02537613) investigated if the addition of obinutuzumab to ibrutinib could lead to improved efficacy in this treatment setting, Ryan explains.

Along with evaluating the overall efficacy of the combination, the trial tested 3 different sequencing options for obinutuzumab and ibrutinib, Ryan continues. The combination was administered with obinutuzumab prior to ibrutinib in Arm A, and ibrutinib was given prior to obinutuzumab in Arm B. The 2 agents were started together in Arm C, Ryan concludes.