Dr. Leonard on Treatment Options for Patients With Indolent B-Cell NHL

John P. Leonard, MD, medical oncology, NewYork-Presbyterian Hospital/Weill Cornell Medical Center, discusses available and emerging therapies for patients with indolent B-cell Non-Hodgkin lymphoma (NHL).

Indolent lymphoma accounts for approximately 30% of patients with NHL, Leonard explains, including follicular lymphoma (FL) and small lymphocytic leukemia. When these patients relapse following initial therapy, oncologists should consider the time from their first therapy to relapse, age, and any existing comorbidities when choosing a subsequent treatment.

Available therapies include single-agent rituximab, R-CHOP, and bendamustine plus rituximab. However, promising early data shows the potential of lenalidomide alone or in combination with rituximab, which has shown activity in FL, Leonard adds. Additional agents being studied in this space include idelalisib, ibrutinib, venetoclax, radioimmunotherapy, and autologous stem cell transplantation.