Lymphoma Research Funded by LLS
Lymphoma Research Funded by LLS
Our investment in lymphoma research has led to significant advances, such as rituximab (Rituxan®) and innovative immunotherapy, such as the first first chimeric antigen receptor (CAR) T-cell-therapy approved by the FDA for lymphoma patients: axicabtagene ciloleucel (Yescarta®). Our current lymphoma research commitment exceeds $73 million, so we can continue to bring promising new treatments to patients.
Lymphoma encompasses a variety of cancers of the lymphatic system and it is a very common hematologic malignancy, making up around a third of all new blood cancer cases in the US and in Europe. It is the most common blood cancer in the United States, and accounts for about 5% of all cancers.
There are many different types of lymphomas, but the two main groups are Hodgkin lymphoma (HL) and non-Hodgkin lymphoma (NHL). Both types can occur in either children or adults.
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Lymphoma Subtypes
Chronic Lymphocytic Leukemia (CLL)
Over the past 10 years, The Leukemia & Lymphoma Society (LLS) has invested more than $52 million to accelerate pioneering research in chronic lymphocytic leukemia (CLL), a blood cancer characterized by the development of too many white blood cells called lymphocytes. Our investment has unlocked new insights on CLL disease mechanisms and advanced new therapies to improve outcomes and care for patients.
Diffuse Large B-Cell Lymphoma (DLBCL)
Diffuse large B-cell lymphoma (DLBCL) is derived from white blood cells that grow in an uncontrolled, rapid manner and therefore require treatment. It is the most common form of lymphoma, comprising more than 25 percent of all lymphomas reported in the US (more than 25,000 cases of DLBCL diagnosed per year). While much progress has been made in treating the disease, many, but not all patients benefit from these treatment options and more work remains to be done.
Follicular Lymphoma (FL)
Follicular lymphoma (FL) is derived from white blood cells that grow in an uncontrolled, slow manner. Therefore, FL is considered an indolent disease that may require treatment. FL is the most common slow-growing non-Hodgkin's lymphoma. To date, although this slowly progressing disease can be managed, reoccurrence of the disease is common and therefore, new treatments are needed.
Hodgkin Lymphoma (HL)
Hodgkin lymphoma (HL) is a subtype of lymphoma resulting from change in the DNA of a type of white blood cell known as a lymphocyte and is characterized by the presence of a cell known as the Reed-Sternberg cell. HL is a highly treatable and there are numerous treatments approved, including a few novel, targeted agents. However, for the 20 to 30 percent of HL patients who relapse, new treatment options are still needed, and LLS continues to support research to pursue new avenues of therapy for these cases.
Mantle cell lymphoma (MCL)
Mantle cell lymphoma (MCL), one of the 70 subtypes of non-Hodgkin lymphoma, results from a malignant change of a B lymphocyte within a lymph node. It is a particularly aggressive disease, with a short remission from standard therapies and a median overall survival of four to five years. LLS is supporting multiple approach to address the unmet need in this disease.
Marginal Zone Lymphoma (MZL)
Marginal zone lymphoma (MZL) is the second most common indolent non-Hodgkin’s lymphoma (iNHL). There are three types of marginal zone lymphomas: the extranodal MZL (EMZL) of mucosa-associated lymphoid tissue (MALT or gastric GALT), the splenic MZL, and the nodal MZL. EMZL can originate at virtually any extranodal site and arises in organs that normally lack lymphoid tissue (eg, stomach, intestine, thyroid, lung, and skin). The most frequently affected organ in EMZL is the stomach, and there is compelling evidence for a causal relationship between H. pylori and gastric EMZL.
T-cell lymphomas (TCL)
T-cell lymphomas comprise approximately 10-15% of all Non-Hodgkin’s Lymphomas (NHLs). The main subsets are peripheral T-cell lymphoma (PTCL) and cutaneous T-cell lymphoma (CTCL). PTCLs refers to the nodal or systemic T-cell lymphomas and comprises 19 different entities with varying clinical and pathologic presentation including PTCL-not otherwise specified (NOS), angioimmunoblastic T-cell lymphoma (AITL), anaplastic large cell lymphoma (ALCL) and adult T-cell Leukemia/lymphoma (ATLL), a rare and aggressive T-cell lymphoma linked to human T-cell lymphotropic virus type 1 (HTLV-1).
Waldenström macroglobulinemia (WM)
Waldenström macroglobulinemia (WM) is an uncommon cancer derived from a specific type of white blood cell, known as a type of plasma cell, and is sometimes referred to as a lymphoplasmacytic lymphoma (LPL). In the United States, WM has an annual incidence of about 1,500 cases/year with patients having an average age of approximately 70 years. WM is one of the many subtypes of non-Hodgkin lymphoma (NHL), which in the US occurs in over 50,000 individuals per year.