Blood Cancer News
Blood Cancer News
Please visit the LLS News page for all blood cancer updates including patient care, advocacy and fundraising.
Our team of experts bringing you blood cancer-related news and updates.
FDA Approves New Formulation of Important Childhood Leukemia Drug
The U.S. Food and Drug Administration yesterday approved nelarabine injection, a critical treatment for T-cell acute lymphoblastic leukemia (T-ALL), an aggressive blood cancer that is most common in children.
FDA Approves New Targeted Treatment for CLL/SLL
“Zanubrutinib led to longer progression-free survival times compared to other standard therapies both as first-line treatment and for treatment after relapse in clinical trials,” said Lee Greenberger, Ph.D., LLS Chief Scientific Officer.
FDA Approves Immunotherapy for Aggressive Form of Follicular Lymphoma
The U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) has approved CAR T-immunotherapy tisagenlecleucel (Kymriah®) for patients with follicular lymphoma (FL) whose cancer has returned or worsened despite at least two earlier treatments.
FDA Approves Combination Therapy for Patients with Certain Forms of Acute Myeloid Leukemia
The Food and Drug Administration (FDA) recently approved a combination of the targeted therapy ivosidenib (Tibsovo) and the chemotherapy azacitidine for the treatment of patients 75 years or older with newly diagnosed acute myeloid leukemia (AML) that has a mutation on the IDH1 gene, or who have existing conditions that prevent the use of intensive induction chemotherapy.
CAR T-Cell Therapy Approved for Initial Treatment of Relapsed Large B-Cell Lymphoma
The U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) last week approved axicabtagene ciloleucel (axi-cel, Yescarta®) for patients with large B-cell lymphoma (LBCL) who either did not respond to first-line standard chemotherapy or relapsed within 12 months. This is a big step for CAR T because it is now proven that CAR T-therapy can outperform the best therapy we had for certain patients that failed initial therapy.
New Drug Approval Moves Us Closer To Long-Term Control of Multiple Myeloma
Just one year after the first CAR T-cell treatment was approved for multiple myeloma, the second is about to hit the market. The FDA approved ciltacabtagene autoleucel (cilta-cel), trade name Carvykti™, last week for patients with relapsed or refractory multiple myeloma who have had at least four previous treatments.
FDA Approves New Drug for Patients with Rare Blood Cancer (Myelofibrosis)
The Food and Drug Administration (FDA) recently approved a drug for the treatment of intermediate or high-risk primary or secondary myelofibrosis, the first specifically for patients with severely low platelet counts (thrombocytopenia).
FDA Approves First Drug for The Prevention of Acute Graft Versus Host Disease
The Food and Drug Administration (FDA) recently approved abatacept (Orencia), in combination with certain immunosuppressants, for the prevention of acute graft versus host disease (aGVHD) in patients 2 years and older who underwent a stem cell transplant from an unrelated donor.
FDA Approves New Treatment Option for Patients with Multiple Myeloma at First or Subsequent Relapse
The U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) recently granted the seventh approval to daratumumab for the treatment of multiple myeloma. This injectable antibody is approved alone or in combination with other drugs at different states of multiple myeloma treatment.
FDA Approves the First Interferon for Adults With Polycythemia Vera
This is the first medication approved for PV that patients can take regardless of their treatment history, meaning it can be used to treat this rare form of cancer early
FDA Approves New Treatment Option for Philadelphia Chromosome-Positive Chronic Myeloid Leukemia
The U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) recently granted accelerated approval to asciminib (Scemblix®) for patients with Philadelphia chromosome-positive chronic myeloid leukemia chronic phase (Ph+ CML-CP)
FDA Approves New Treatment Option for Common and Serious Complication of Life-saving Stem Cell Transplants
The U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) this week approved ruxolitinib (Jakafi) in patients 12 years or older for the treatment chronic graft-versus-host-disease (GVHD) that has not responded to previous treatment. GVHD is a common and serious complication of donor-derived stem cell transplants, which are used to treat multiple myeloma and forms of leukemia and lymphoma.
New Study Shows Most Blood Cancer Patients Benefit from an Additional COVID-19 Vaccine Dose
More than one in two patients with B-cell blood cancers produced antibodies to a third dose of COVID-19 vaccine despite having no detectable antibodies after the first two doses, according to a new study from The Leukemia & Lymphoma Society (LLS).
FDA Approves New Treatment Option for Rare Form of Lymphoma
The U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) recently approved zanubrutinib (Brukinsa®) for the treatment of adult patients with Waldenström’s macroglobulinemia (WM). This is the second therapy approved specifically for the treatment of this rare type of lymphoma.
Study from The Leukemia & Lymphoma Society Shows COVID-19 Vaccine is Safe but 25% Of Blood Cancer Patients Do Not Produce Detectable Antibodies
About 1:4 blood cancer patients fail to produce detectable antibodies after COVID-19 vaccination with results varying substantially by type of blood cancer, according to a new study from The Leukemia & Lymphoma Society published today in Cancer Cell. While other studies have shown that certain blood cancer patients may not get optimal protection from vaccination, the LLS study is the largest to date examining over 1,400 patients and the first to provide a detailed look across all the major blood cancer and treatment types.
FDA Approves a Targeted Treatment for a Rare Form of Blood Cancer
The U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) last week approved avapritinib (Ayvakit®) for the treatment of advanced systemic mastocytosis (SM) in adults, including patients with aggressive SM, SM with associated hematologic neoplasm, and mast cell leukemia.
FDA Approves Isatuximab for Relapsed/Refractory Multiple Myeloma
The U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) approved isatuximab (Sarclisa) in combination with carfilzomib and dexamethasone to treat adult patients with relapsed or refractory multiple myeloma who have received one to three prior lines of therapy.
New Drug Approval Expands Options for Patients with Rare Marginal Zone Lymphoma and Advanced Follicular Lymphoma
The U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) today announced approval of UKONIQ™ (umbralisib), a once-daily, oral medication for the treatment of marginal zone lymphoma (MZL) that has returned or worsened following prior treatment with an anti-CD20 antibody.
FDA Approval of New CAR T-Cell Therapy Further Solidifies Immunotherapy as a Mainstay in Cancer Treatment
The U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) today announced approval of a new CAR T-cell treatment for adult patients with certain forms of relapsed/refractory large B-cell lymphoma.
New Drug Approval Expands Options for Patients with Triple-Class Refractory Multiple Myeloma
The U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) today announced approval of melphalan flufenamide, also known as melflufen (Pepaxto), in combination with dexamethasone for the treatment of adults with multiple myeloma whose disease has returned or worsened following prior treatment with four different classes of drugs.
New Drug Approval Expands Options For Patients with Rare Marginal Zone Lymphoma and Advanced Follicular Lymphoma
The U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) today announced approval of UKONIQ™ (umbralisib), a once-daily, oral medication for the treatment of marginal zone lymphoma (MZL) that has returned or worsened following prior treatment with an anti-CD20 antibody. MZL is a clinical heterogeneous, slow-growing non-hodgkin lymphoma composed of three subtypes: extranodal, nodal or splenic MZL. It is considered a slow growing disease with generally favorable outcome.