Background: Talquetamab is approved for treatment of triple-class exposed relapsed/refractory multiple myeloma (RRMM) based on the MonumenTAL-1 study (NCT03399799/NCT04634552). Previous indirect treatment comparisons (ITCs) demonstrated superiority of talquetamab over real-world physician's choice (RW) treatment regimens. Here, we report an updated ITC with an additional ∼ 8 and 15 months of follow-up in MonumenTAL-1 and the Flatiron Health Research Database, respectively.
Patients and methods: The research database was used to develop an external control arm for patients who met key MonumenTAL-1 eligibility criteria (n = 629; 1169 eligible lines of therapy [LOT]). Patient-level data from MonumenTAL-1 were included for patients who received talquetamab 0.4 mg/kg QW (n = 143) or 0.8 mg/kg Q2W (n = 154). After adjusting for baseline imbalances, the relative effectiveness of talquetamab versus RW treatment regimens was assessed for progression-free survival (PFS), time to next treatment (TTNT), and overall survival (OS).
Results: Talquetamab 0.4 mg/kg QW and 0.8 mg/kg Q2W, respectively, demonstrated significant improvements over RW treatment regimens for all outcomes, including PFS (HR, 0.66 [95% CI, 0.53-0.82] and 0.54 [0.44-0.68]), TTNT (HR, 0.57 [0.47-0.69] and 0.49 [0.40-0.60]), and OS (HR, 0.56 [0.42-0.74] and 0.42 [0.31-0.57]); superiority was maintained in the United States Prescribing Information-aligned subgroup of patients with ≥ 4 prior LOT. Results from sensitivity analyses were generally similar.
Conclusion: Talquetamab demonstrated continued superiority over RW treatment regimens in RRMM for PFS, TTNT, and OS, including in patients with ≥ 4 prior LOT. These data suggest talquetamab is an effective treatment option in eligible patients.
Background: Extramedullary acute myeloid leukemia (eAML) is a rare subtype of AML. The clinical features, molecular mechanisms and prognosis of eAML remain controversial. This study aimed to systematically analyze the differences in clinical and molecular characteristics between eAML patients and AML patients, and evaluate the impact of this disease subtype on survival outcomes.
Methods: We retrospectively included 96 patients with eAML and 144 patients with AML from our center between 2015 and 2024.
Results: eAML patients had a higher tumor burden than AML patients, with significantly elevated white blood cells (P < .001), platelets (P < .001), LDH (P < .001), peripheral blood blasts (P < .001) and bone marrow blasts (P = .005). In terms of molecular genetics, the eAML group was enriched for TET2, DNMT3A, ASXL1, PTPN11 and KMT2A mutations, while NPM1 and U2AF1 mutations were uncommon. The median overall survival (20.1 months vs. 38.8 months, P = .0021) and median relapse-free survival (7.6 months vs. 20.8 months, P = .00027) were significantly shorter for eAML patients. KRAS mutations and chromosomal abnormalities of t(9;11) were associated with poor prognosis. Allogeneic hematopoietic stem cell transplantation (Allo-HSCT) could improve the prognosis of eAML patients. In subgroup analysis, we found that patients with multiple extramedullary involvements, synchronous eAML, skin infiltration, and soft tissue involvement had a worse prognosis, while patients with central nervous system (CNS) infiltration had a better prognosis.
Conclusion: Our study demonstrates that patients with eAML subtype have a worse prognosis, unique molecular features and higher tumor burden. Allo-HSCT might be an effective way to improve prognosis. This study provides evidence critical for risk stratification and treatment optimization in eAML.
Ibrutinib, a Bruton tyrosine kinase inhibitor, is a cornerstone of first-line treatment for chronic lymphocytic leukemia/small lymphocytic lymphoma (CLL/SLL). While generally well tolerated, dose adjustments may be used in some patients to manage adverse events or tolerability issues. This review examines the real-world outcomes such as the effectiveness and duration of therapy of first-line ibrutinib treatment in patients with CLL/SLL, including those with high-risk genomic features. The role of flexible dosing strategies, including dose adjustments or interruptions, and their role in optimizing ibrutinib treatment duration and outcomes are explored. Consistent with results from clinical trials, real-world evidence supports the effectiveness of ibrutinib dosing flexibility in managing adverse events while maintaining long-term clinical benefits. Ibrutinib dose adjustments help optimize treatment persistence and reduce treatment discontinuations, thereby enabling continuous ibrutinib treatment. Furthermore, real-world evidence suggests that ibrutinib dose flexibility contributes to reduced healthcare resource utilization, including fewer hospitalizations and outpatient visits, thus lowering the economic burden of CLL/SLL treatment. Long-term effectiveness, together with lower costs and the ability to tailor ibrutinib dosing to individual patients, supports ibrutinib as a pivotal agent in the management of CLL/SLL.
Background: High dose chemotherapy followed by autologous stem cell transplantation (HDT/ASCT) remains the preferred consolidation strategy for patients with newly diagnosed multiple myeloma (MM). While its use has expanded to patients over 65 years (> 65), few studies have compared real-world outcomes to younger patients.
Patients and methods: This retrospective cohort study included patients with MM who received first line HDT/ASCT between 2013 and 2022 at a large tertiary referral center in The Netherlands. We compared outcomes between patients > 65 years and 65 years or younger (≤ 65), assessing overall survival (OS), time to next treatment or MM-related death (TTNT-D), complications, and quality of life.
Results: Among 394 patients, 109 were > 65 years (range 66-72, 11 patients > 70) and 285 ≤ 65 years (range 34-65). Distributions in baseline characteristics were comparable. Median OS and TTNT-D were 101 and 41 months, respectively, in patients > 65 years compared to 116 (P = .56) and 38 (P = .78) months for patients ≤ 65 years. Age was not a significant predictor. HDT/ASCT was feasible, illustrated by a low serious complications incidence rate and a transplantation-related mortality of 1%. Quality of life data show a stable to increasing trend in the long term.
Conclusion: Survival, treatment response, complication rates, and long-term quality of life were comparable between age groups. Our real-world data confirm the safety and efficacy of HDT/ASCT in fit patients with MM over 65 years. These findings support the broader application of HDT/ASCT in selected older patients and reinforce its role.

