Chronic lymphocytic leukemia (CLL) is a low-grade lymphoproliferative tumor that occurs frequently in middle-aged and elderly people. Early and precise intervention can effectively improve the clinical prognosis of CLL patients. In the past, chemotherapy was the main treatment plan. With the development of molecular biology and the continuous advent of immune targeting drugs, targeted drugs targeting B cell receptor signaling pathway have shown high clinical application value in the diagnosis and treatment path of CLL. Cellular immunotherapies such as CAR-T also offer hope for patients with relapsed and refractory CLL. Allogeneic hematopoietic stem cell transplantation and multi-drug combination have also shown remarkable results in clinical practice. The purpose of this article is to review the latest research progress in the treatment of CLL.
Humans ; Hematopoietic Stem Cell Transplantation ; Immunotherapy ; Leukemia, Lymphocytic, Chronic, B-Cell/drug therapy* ; Signal Transduction

OBJECTIVE: To analyze the clinical characteristics of the patients with B-cell chronic lymphoproliferative disease（B-CLPD） in the new drug era and the effect of new drug treatment on efficacy and survival. METHODS: The clinical and laboratory data of 200 cases B-CLPD patients diagnosed between April 2015 and August 2021 were analyzed retrospectively. The clinical efficacy and survival of the patients under different treatments including Bruton tyrosine kinase（BTK） inhibitors， rituximab， and chemotherapy alone were analyzed. The prognostic factors affecting the survival of patients were analyzed by univarite analysis and multivariate analysis. RESULTS: There were 119 male（59.5％） and 81 female（40.5%） in 200 cases B-CLPD patients， the sex ratio(male/female) was 1.5∶1 with median age of 61（30- 91） years old. The distribution of subtypes were as fallows: 51 cases (25.5%) of chronic lymphocytic leukemia/small lymphocytic lymphoma（CLL/SLL）， 64（32.0%） cases of follicular lymphoma（FL）， 40（20.0%） cases mantle cell lymphoma（MCL）， 30（15.0%） cases of marginal zone lymphoma（MZL）， 10（5%） cases of lymphoplasmacytic lymphoma/waldenstrom macroglobulinemia（LPL/WM）， 5（2.5%） cases of B cell chronic lymphoproliferative disorders unclassified（B-CLPD-U） . The main clinical manifestation of 102 patients was lymph node enlargement, 32 cases were complicated with B symptoms. Among CLL/SLL patients， there were 12（23.5%） cases in Binet A and 39（76.5%） cases in Binet B/C. There were 29 patients（20.9%） in Ann Arbor or Lugano stage I-II and 110 cases（79.1%） in stage III-IV of other subtypes. The complete remission（CR） rate was 43.1%（25/58）， 40.2%（39/97）， 7.1%（1/14）， and overaIl response rate（ORR） was 87.9%（51/58）， 62.9%（61/97）， 28.6%（4/14） in the groups of BTK inhibitors， rituximab-based therapy， and chemotherapy alone. The 3-year OS rate and PFS rate in all patients was 79.2% and 72.4% respectively. The 3-year OS rate of patient with MZL, CLL/SLL, FL,WM was 94.7%, 87.7%, 86.8% and 83.3% respectively, while the 3-year OS rate of MCL was only 40.6%, which was significantly lower than other subtypes. The median OS of patients treated with BTK inhibitors and rituximab-based therapy was 20.5 and 18.5 months respectively， and the 3-year OS rate was 97.4% and 90.7%. However， the median PFS of patients receiving chemotherapy alone was 4 months， and the 1-year OS rate was 52.7%， which was statistically significant compared with the other two groups（P<0.05）. Univarite analysis showed that anemia， elevated lactate dehydrogenase， elevated β2-microglobulin， and splenomegaly were the poor prognostic factors for OS（P<0.05）， elevated lactate dehydrogenase was also poor prognostic factors for PFS（P<0.05）. Multifactor analysis showed that anemia and elevated lactate dehydrogenase were the independent poor prognostic factors for survival（P<0.05）. CONCLUSION The clinical features of B-CLPD was various， anemia and elevated lactate dehydrogenase are the prognostic factors for poor survival. BTK inhibitors and new immunotherapy can improve the survival and prognosis of patients in the new drug era.
Humans ; Adult ; Female ; Male ; Middle Aged ; Aged ; Aged, 80 and over ; Rituximab/therapeutic use* ; Leukemia, Lymphocytic, Chronic, B-Cell/drug therapy* ; Retrospective Studies ; Lymphoma, Mantle-Cell ; Prognosis ; Lymphoma, B-Cell, Marginal Zone ; Lactate Dehydrogenases

Objective:b> To understand the current status of diagnosis and treatment of chronic lymphocytic leukemia (CLL) /small lymphocytic lymphoma (SLL) among hematologists, oncologists, and lymphoma physicians from hospitals of different levels in China. Methods:b> This multicenter questionnaire survey was conducted from March 2021 to July 2021 and included 1,000 eligible physicians. A combination of face-to-face interviews and online questionnaire surveys was used. A standardized questionnaire regarding the composition of patients treated for CLL/SLL, disease diagnosis and prognosis evaluation, concomitant diseases, organ function evaluation, treatment selection, and Bruton tyrosine kinase (BTK) inhibitor was used. Results:b> ①The interviewed physicians stated that the proportion of male patients treated for CLL/SLL is higher than that of females, and the age is mainly concentrated in 61-70 years old. ②Most of the interviewed physicians conducted tests, such as bone marrow biopsies and immunohistochemistry, for patient diagnosis, in addition to the blood test. ③Only 13.7% of the interviewed physicians fully grasped the initial treatment indications recommended by the existing guidelines. ④In terms of cognition of high-risk prognostic factors, physicians' knowledge of unmutated immunoglobulin heavy-chain variable and 11q- is far inferior to that of TP53 mutation and complex karyotype, which are two high-risk prognostic factors, and only 17.1% of the interviewed physicians fully mastered CLL International Prognostic Index scoring system. ⑤Among the first-line treatment strategy, BTK inhibitors are used for different types of patients, and physicians have formed a certain understanding that BTK inhibitors should be preferentially used in patients with high-risk factors and elderly patients, but the actual use of BTK inhibitors in different types of patients is not high (31.6%-46.0%). ⑥BTK inhibitors at a reduced dose in actual clinical treatment were used by 69.0% of the physicians, and 66.8% of the physicians had interrupted the BTK inhibitor for >12 days in actual clinical treatment. The use of BTK inhibitors is reduced or interrupted mainly because of adverse reactions, such as atrial fibrillation, severe bone marrow suppression, hemorrhage, and pulmonary infection, as well as patients' payment capacity and effective disease progression control. ⑦Some differences were found in the perceptions and behaviors of hematologists and oncologists regarding the prognostic assessment of CLL/SLL, the choice of treatment options, the clinical use of BTK inhibitors, etc. Conclusion:b> At present, a gap remains between the diagnosis and treatment of CLL/SLL among Chinese physicians compared with the recommendations in the guidelines regarding the diagnostic criteria, treatment indications, prognosis assessment, accompanying disease assessment, treatment strategy selection, and rational BTK inhibitor use, especially the proportion of dose reduction or BTK inhibitor discontinuation due to high adverse events.
Female ; Humans ; Male ; Aged ; Middle Aged ; Leukemia, Lymphocytic, Chronic, B-Cell/drug therapy* ; Prognosis ; Lymphoma, B-Cell ; Immunohistochemistry ; Immunoglobulin Heavy Chains/therapeutic use*

Humans ; Leukemia, Lymphocytic, Chronic, B-Cell/drug therapy* ; Immune Checkpoint Inhibitors/therapeutic use* ; Lymphoma, Large B-Cell, Diffuse ; Disease Progression ; T-Lymphocytes ; Cell Transformation, Neoplastic

Humans ; Rituximab/therapeutic use* ; Bendamustine Hydrochloride/therapeutic use* ; Leukemia, Lymphocytic, Chronic, B-Cell/drug therapy* ; Lymphoma, B-Cell ; Protein Kinase Inhibitors/therapeutic use* ; Antineoplastic Combined Chemotherapy Protocols ; Treatment Outcome

Objective:b> Murine CD19 chimeric antigen receptor T-cell (CAR-T) products have been approved for the treatment of refractory/relapsed (R/R) B-cell acute lymphocytic leukemia (B-ALL) ; moreover, humanized products are also undergoing clinical trials. This study aimed to explore the differences in safety and short- and long-term follow-up efficacy between humanized and murine CD19 CAR-T-cells for treating relapsed and refractory B-ALL. Methods:b> Clinical data of 80 patients with R/R B-ALL treated with CD19-targeted CAR-T-cells at the Union Hospital of Tongji Medical College of Huazhong University of Science and Technology between May 2016 and March 2023 were analyzed, which included 31 patients with murine CAR-T and 49 with humanized products. Results:b> The proportion of patients with cytokine-release syndrome (CRS) in the murine and humanized groups was 63.1% and 65.3%, respectively. Moreover, a higher proportion of patients suffered from severe CRS in the murine group than in the humanized CAR-T group (19.4% vs 8.2%, P=0.174). Furthermore, one patient per group died of grade 5 CRS. The incidence of grade 1-2 immune effector cell-associated neurotoxicity syndrome (ICANS) was 12.9% and 6.1%, respectively; severe ICANS were not observed. Among patients receiving murine CAR-T-cells, an overall response (OR) was observed in 74.2%. Conversely, the OR rate of patients receiving humanized CAR-T-cells was 87.8%. During the median follow-up time of 10.5 months, the median recurrence-free survival (RFS) of patients with murine CAR-T-cells was 12 months, which was as long as that of patients with humanized CAR-T-cells. The median overall survival (OS) were not reached in both groups. Of the 45 patients with a bone marrow burden over 20% at baseline, humanized CAR-T therapy was associated with a significantly improved RFS (43.25% vs 33.33%, P=0.027). Bridging transplantation was an independent factor in prolonging OS (χ(2)=8.017, P=0.005) and PFS (χ(2)=6.584, P=0.010). Common risk factors, such as age, high proportion of bone marrow blasts, and BCR-ABL fusion gene expression, had no significant effect on patients' long-term follow-up outcomes. Three patients reached complete remission after reinfusion of humanized CAR-T-cells. However, one patient relapsed one month after his second infusion of murine CAR-T-cells. Conclusions:b> The results indicate that humanized CAR-T therapy showed durable efficacy in patients with a higher tumor burden in the bone marrow without any influence on safety. Moreover, it could overcome immunogenicity-induced CAR-T resistance, providing treatment options for patients who were not treated successfully with CAR-T therapies.
Animals ; Humans ; Mice ; Antigens, CD19 ; Burkitt Lymphoma/drug therapy* ; Cell- and Tissue-Based Therapy ; Follow-Up Studies ; Immunotherapy, Adoptive ; Leukemia, Lymphocytic, Chronic, B-Cell/drug therapy* ; Precursor B-Cell Lymphoblastic Leukemia-Lymphoma ; Precursor Cell Lymphoblastic Leukemia-Lymphoma/drug therapy* ; Receptors, Chimeric Antigen

Humans ; Leukemia, Lymphocytic, Chronic, B-Cell/drug therapy*

Abnormal cell apoptosis is closely related to the occurrence of hematologic tumors, B-cell lymphoma-2 (BCL-2), as a key anti-apoptotic protein in intrinsic programmed cell death, has become a hot spot in the treatment of hematologic tumors in recent years. Venetoclax is an oral small-molecule selective BCL-2 inhibitor approved by the Food and Drug Administration (FDA） for the treatment of chronic lymphocytic leukemia (CLL) patients or small lymphocytic lymphoma (SLL) patients and for the treatment of elderly acute myeloid leukemia (AML) patients that is not suitable for aggressive chemotherapy. In addition, it also showed a promising clinical application in treatment of non-Hodgkin's lymphoma (NHL) patients, which is a new expansion of the clinical indications for venetoclax. In this review, the role of BCL-2 protein family played in the regulation of NHL cell apoptosis, the development of BCL-2 inhibitors and the recent research progress of venetoclax in the treatment of NHL are reviewed.
Aged ; Antineoplastic Agents/therapeutic use* ; Apoptosis Regulatory Proteins ; Bridged Bicyclo Compounds, Heterocyclic/therapeutic use* ; Hematologic Neoplasms/drug therapy* ; Humans ; Leukemia, Lymphocytic, Chronic, B-Cell/drug therapy* ; Lymphoma, B-Cell ; Lymphoma, Non-Hodgkin/drug therapy* ; Proto-Oncogene Proteins c-bcl-2/metabolism* ; Sulfonamides

Venetoclax is a selective inhibitor of the anti-apoptotic protein B-cell lymphoma 2（BCL-2）and has great potential in treating a variety of hematological tumors. In recent years, domestic and foreign scholars have tried to use venetoclax singal or in combination with some drugs to treat the patients with hematological tumors, including elderly acute myeloid leukemia（AML）patients un suitable for intensive chemotherapy, relapsed or refractory chronic lymphocytic leukemia（CLL）, Non-Hodgkin's lymphoma（NHL）and multiple myeloma（MM）patients, these studies have achieved good results．At the same time，some scholars found that the secondary drug-resistance occurred in some patients who continuous treated with Venetoclax, and explored the Venetoclax-resistant mechanism. In this review, the research advance of Venetoclax in hematological tumors and the mechanisms of drug resistance are summarized and discussed briefly.
Aged ; Antineoplastic Agents ; therapeutic use ; Bridged Bicyclo Compounds, Heterocyclic ; therapeutic use ; Hematologic Neoplasms ; Humans ; Leukemia, Lymphocytic, Chronic, B-Cell ; drug therapy ; Sulfonamides

OBJECTIVE: To investigate effect and mechanism of miR-214 in fludarabine resistance of chronic lympho-cytic leukemia (CLL). METHODS: A total of 10 patients with CLL resistante to fludarabine (Flu) and 10 healthy persons admitted to Hematology Department of our hospital in August 2014 - July 2018 were selected. Expression level of miR-214 in mononuclear cells in patients with CLL and healthy persons were determined by RT-PCR. Primary CLL cells from patients with CLL were divided into normal control group (control group), negative control group (miR-214-NC group) and viral transinfection group (miR-214-ASO group). After 24 h-transfection, CLL cells were cultured with different con-centration of Flu for 48 h, then the cell proliferation and apoptosis were detected, and the levels of down-stream genes and proteins releted with PTEN and PI3K/AKT signialing pathway were determined. RESULTS: The expression level of miR-214 in mononuclear cells of CLL patients significantly increased in comparison with healthy persons(P<0.05); the expression level of miR-214 in miR-214-ASO group significantly decreased (P<0.05); Absorbance in control group at Flu concentration of 3, 10 and 30 μmol/L was significantly decreased (P<0.05). Apoptosis rate in miR-214-ASO group at Flu concentration of 10 mmol/L significantly increased (P<0.05). At Flu concentration of 10 mmol/L, mRNA levels PTEN and BAD in miR-214-ASO group significantly increased (P<0.05), but mRNA levels of MDM2 and NF-κB significantly decreased (P<0.05). At Flu concentration of 10 mmol/L, protein levels of PTEN and p-BAD in miR-214-ASO group significantly increased (P<0.05), but protein levels of MDM2 and NF-κB significantly decreased (P<0.05). CONCLUSION Inhibition of miR-214 can enhance the sensitivity of drug-resistant CLL cells to fludarabine, which may be raleted with the promotion of cell apotosis and regulation of down-stream molecules expression of PTEN/AKT signaling pathway.
Apoptosis ; Humans ; Leukemia, Lymphocytic, Chronic, B-Cell ; drug therapy ; MicroRNAs ; Phosphatidylinositol 3-Kinases ; Vidarabine ; analogs & derivatives ; genetics ; therapeutic use