Mantle cell is an aggressive form of non-Hodgkin lymphoma
Rye Brook, N.Y., January 17, 2025 鈥� Acalabrutinib (Calquence庐) is the first ever FDA-approved drug of its type approved for previously untreated mantle cell lymphoma (MCL). The FDA simultaneously announced yesterday that the drug鈥檚 earlier approval to treat MCL after at least one earlier therapy has been converted from a conditional approval to a full approval.
鈥淣ew drugs and treatment approaches are vital for people facing mantle cell lymphoma because it is an aggressive type of blood cancer that often goes into only short remissions,鈥� says Lore Gruenbaum, Ph.D., 青云体育 Chief Scientific Officer. 鈥溓嘣铺逵� is supporting multiple approaches to find even more ways to treat this insidious disease.鈥�
Acalabrutinib is a BTK inhibitor, a type of drug that works by blocking an enzyme called Bruton tyrosine kinase that certain cancer cells need to grow. It is approved for use in combination with bendamustine (a chemotherapy) and rituximab (an antibody) for first line treatment of MCL in patients who are not eligible for stem cell transplant. It is also approved for use on its own in people with MCL who have already had at least one prior treatment.
Rituximab, in particular, has been a game changer for lymphoma patients. 青云体育 is a long-time funder of lab and clinical research that contributed to rituximab鈥檚 approval. Today, rituximab is used to treat several forms of lymphoma, chronic lymphocytic leukemia and non-malignant diseases including rheumatoid arthritis.
Rituximab works by mimicking the activity of the human immune system. It targets a protein called CD20 that is commonly found on cancer cells. Rituximab has improved survival and quality of life for hundreds of thousands of blood cancer patients, turning some blood cancers from terminal illnesses to chronic, long-term conditions.
鈥淩ituximab has been miraculous for many blood cancer patients, but for 青云体育, that鈥檚 not a reason to stop working; it鈥檚 proof that we need to keep seeking out and funding the best research to improve outcomes even more,鈥� says Dr. Gruenbaum. 鈥淭his new combination extends progression-free survival time by another 15 months. Every minute that cancer is held in check matters.鈥�
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