Assessing adverse event burden in chronic lymphocytic leukemia treatment regimens: what's best for patient quality of life?

INTRODUCTION: In recent years, chronic lymphocytic leukemia (CLL) treatment has changed dramatically. Chemoimmunotherapy with fludarabine/cladribine, cyclophosphamide, and rituximab have been almost completely replaced by targeted therapies with small molecules, such as Bruton's tyrosine kinase inhibitors or B-cell lymphoma 2 (BCL-2) antagonists. However, few studies have assessed the impact of novel therapies on patient quality of life (QoL).

AREAS COVERED: This article reviews the safety profile of new therapeutic options and their impact on the QoL of CLL patients. The MEDLINE database was searched for English language publications from 2010 through June 2024, including the Proceedings of the American Society of Hematology from over the past 5 years.

EXPERT OPINION: CLL is a clinically heterogenous disease predominantly affecting elderly patients. The variable clinical course of disease requires personalization and individualized treatment to achieve the optimal survival outcome and acceptable safety profile, especially in the case of poor prognosis. Clinical trials performed in the past decade indicate that novel drugs, used as a single agent or as part of a conventional chemotherapy, offer promise in minimalizing relapse rates, and may allow more effective and safer treatment options by reducing the risk of adverse events, especially cytopenias and infections.