Leukemia

Chronic lymphocytic leukemia (CLL) is the most common type of leukemia in adults. Recently, several new drug combinations without chemotherapy have been approved by the FDA for patients with CLL, providing patients new options when their cancer stops responding to current treatment.

Martin Miralda was fresh out of college when a short visit to the United States helped to save his life after he was diagnosed with leukemia. Despite his lacking health insurance as a non-resident, he received superior medical care through “Charity Care,” a service that covers necessary hospitalization for uninsured people in the country and is available in several states.

Results of a recent study showed that using the targeted therapy Imbruvica (ibrutinib) as the first treatment in older adults with CLL was better than the combination of chemotherapy plus immunotherapy in slowing the progression of the disease.

This new chemotherapy-free combination of Imbruvica, a targeted therapy, plus Gazyva, a CD20-directed cytolytic antibody, was recently approved by the FDA as first-line treatment of adults aged 65 or older who are newly diagnosed with chronic lymphocytic leukemia (CLL) or small lymphocytic lymphoma (SLL).

Nurse Navigator Claire White describes the way she tells her patients what CAR T-cell therapy is and how it works.

Here are the drugs and financial support services available to patients receiving treatment for Leukemia.

New findings show that starting with a targeted therapy regimen instead of chemotherapy improves outcomes for patients with chronic lymphocytic leukemia, particularly for those under age 70.

Knowing if the patient’s chronic lymphocytic leukemia (CLL) has genetic abnormalities through genetic testing can help doctors select the best treatment.