Researchers Find New Hope for Leukemia Treatment

It is reported that researchers at the Cleveland Clinic have tested a new drug for treating chronic leukemia and found that new markers can be used to determine which patients will benefit most from treatment.

This information was published online in Blood, a weekly medical magazine published by the American Society of Hematology.

Chronic lymphocytic leukemia (CLL) is a standard leukocyte malignancy that cannot be cured and is the most common type of leukemia in Western countries. Conventional chemotherapy can effectively control CLL for many years, but the condition is repeated. CLL is characterized by an uncontrolled cell growth and division, which is due to a defect in the process known as programmed cell death or apoptosis. A group of proteins called the Bcl-2 family are related to this defect.

Dr Alex Almasan, a researcher at the Lerner Institute (LRI) at the Cleveland Clinic, worked closely with LRI and other researchers at the Tassig Cancer Institute at the Cleveland Clinic to collect blood samples from patients with CLL and tested the ability of a new drug to kill these cancer cells. The drug, Navitoclax, has entered an early stage clinical trial for the treatment of CLL patients. Navitoclax seems to be effective for some patients. Before this study, there was no clear way to predict who would respond to its effects.

In addition, these studies can provide useful information on the ongoing trials of Navitoclax for use in other hematological malignancies or solid tumors.

Almasan said: "A follow-up study of patients who have been treated with Navitoclax, especially poor responders, will determine whether the Bcl-2 family genes detected in this study are also responsible for the development of resistance to this drug. Very important."