Medically reviewed by Dr. Brian Koffman
The Bottom Line:
First-line treatment with targeted therapies produces durable remissions and survival in patients with SLL.
Who Performed the Research and Where Was it Presented:
Amber Koehler, PA-C, MS from the Mayo Clinic and colleagues presented the results at the American Society for Hematology (ASH) Annual Meeting 2023.
Background:
In current classification systems, chronic lymphocytic leukemia (CLL) and small lymphocytic lymphoma (SLL) are considered the same disease characterized by malignant B cells. However, they are slightly different based on the primary location of the disease in the body. In CLL, most malignant cells are found in the peripheral blood and bone marrow, but in SLL, most malignant cells are found in the lymph nodes. Researchers wanted to specifically look at patients with SLL to assess reasons for treatment initiation and patient outcomes after first-line treatment.
Methods and Participants:
This study was a retrospective chart review of patients with SLL who received first-line treatment at the Mayo Clinic between 1995 and 2023.
Results:
- A total of 182 patients with SLL were included in this study.
- The most common clinical reasons for starting therapy were swollen lymph nodes or an enlarged spleen (72%), followed by disease that had spread outside the lymph nodes (16%).
- Patients received several different types of treatments over the 20-year study period, and the table below shows the median treatment-free survival and overall survival.
| Treatment | Median Treatment-free Survival (years) | Median Overall Survival (years) |
|---|---|---|
| Monoclonal antibody alone | 2.4 | 9.5 |
| Chemotherapy alone | 2.0 | 9.7 |
| Chemoimmunotherapy | 3.8 | 15.0 |
| Targeted therapy | 6.0 | Not evaluable* |
- Targeted therapies (BTK inhibitors, venetoclax) led to better patient outcomes than other therapy types, similar to what we see with CLL.
- There weren’t enough patients to compare different types of targeted therapies.
Conclusions:
First-line treatment with targeted therapies produces durable remissions and survival in patients with SLL. This is similar to what we have seen in clinical trials with CLL and SLL patients. SLL has some slight differences from CLL that warrant consideration when developing a treatment plan. However, further research is needed to determine if specific targeted therapies are more effective than others for SLL.
Links and Resources:
Watch the interview on the abstract here:
You can read the ASH abstract here: Outcomes of Patients with Small Lymphocytic Lymphoma (SLL) Receiving First Line Treatment.
Take care of yourself first.
Ann Liu, PhD
