Dr. Coutre Discusses Blinatumomab in MRD-Positive ALL

Steven Coutre, MD, professor of medicine at Stanford University Medical Center, discusses the role of blinatumomab (Blincyto) for patients with minimal residual disease (MRD)-positive acute lymphoblastic leukemia (ALL).

Blinatumomab is a newer antibody therapy that has shown benefit in treating patients with MRD-positive disease by eliciting MRD-negative remissions, says Coutre. This drug was approved in patients who have relapsed, and is currently being used in randomized trials as upfront therapy. These trials are looking at blinatumomab post-remission, evaluating whether it decreases the risk of relapse.

The FDA’s Oncologic Drugs Advisory Committee (ODAC) is slated to review a supplemental biologics license application for the use of blinatumomab for the treatment of patients with MRD-positive ALL. Investigators found that complete MRD response was associated with significantly improved survival. Compared with nonresponders, the patients who had complete MRD response had superior relapse-free survival (23.6 vs 5.7 months; P = .002) and overall survival (OS; 38.9 vs 12.5 months; P = .002).