Abstract
Chronic lymphocytic leukemia (CLL) is frequently complicated by secondary autoimmune cytopenias (AICs). Ibrutinib is an irreversible inhibitor of Bruton’s tyrosine kinase approved for the treatment of relapsed CLL and CLL with del(17p). The effect of ibrutinib treatment on the incidence of AIC is currently unknown. We reviewed medical records of 301 patients treated with ibrutinib, as participants in therapeutic clinical trials at The Ohio State University Comprehensive Cancer Center between July 2010 and July 2014. Subjects were reviewed with respect to past history of AIC, and treatment-emergent AIC cases were identified. Before starting ibrutinib treatment, 26% of patients had experienced AIC. Information was available for a total of 468 patient-years of ibrutinib exposure, during which there were six cases of treatment-emergent AIC. This corresponds to an estimated incidence rate of 13 episodes for every 1000 patient-years of ibrutinib treatment. We further identified 22 patients receiving therapy for AIC at the time ibrutinib was started. Of these 22 patients, 19 were able to discontinue AIC therapy. We found that ibrutinib treatment is associated with a low rate of treatment-emergent AIC. Patients with an existing AIC have been successfully treated with ibrutinib and subsequently discontinued AIC therapy.
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Acknowledgements
This work was supported in part by the Four Winds Foundation, D. Warren Brown Foundation, Mr and Mrs Michael Thomas, Mr Al and Mrs Midge Lipkin, the Harry Mangurian Foundation, the Sullivan CLL Research Foundation, the Leukemia and Lymphoma Society, and R01 CA177292 and K23 CA178183 from the National Cancer Institute. Included clinical trials were funded by Pharmacyclics, Janssen, the Leukemia and Lymphoma Society, D. Warren Brown Foundation, Mr and Mrs Michael Thomas, the Harry T. Mangurian Foundation, P50 CA140158 and P01 CA095426 from the National Cancer Institute, Pelotonia, Conquer Cancer Foundation, and the American Society of Hematology.
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JAJ has served as a consultant for Pharmacyclics and Janssen. KJM has received research support from Pharmacyclics. KAB has received research funding from Pharmacyclics and Janssen. SMJ has received research funding and has served as a consultant for Pharmacyclics. The remaining authors declare no conflict of interest.
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Rogers, K., Ruppert, A., Bingman, A. et al. Incidence and description of autoimmune cytopenias during treatment with ibrutinib for chronic lymphocytic leukemia. Leukemia 30, 346–350 (2016). https://doi.org/10.1038/leu.2015.273
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DOI: https://doi.org/10.1038/leu.2015.273
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