Dr. Woyach on the Results of the ELEVATE-TN Trial in CLL

Jennifer Woyach, MD, associate professor, The Ohio State University Comprehensive Cancer Center—James, discusses the results of the ELEVATE-TN trial in patients with treatment-naïve chronic lymphocytic leukemia (CLL).

The ELEVATE-TN study examined chlorambucil/obinutuzumab (Gazyva) versus acalabrutinib (Calquence) alone versus acalabrutinib plus obinutuzumab—a trial that led to the FDA approval of acalabrutinib, explains Woyach. Acalabrutinib alone and acalabrutinib/obinutuzumab had significantly improved progression-free survival (PFS) along with a 2-year PFS rate of about 90%, according to Woyach.

There appears to be a beneficial trend with the addition of obinutuzumab to acalabrutinib, which was predicted in preclinical studies. Additionally, obinutuzumab is a superior antibody compared with rituximab (Rituxan), says Woyach. The data need to mature before it is known which patient populations with CLL benefit from the addition of obinutuzumab, concludes Woyach.