Role of allogeneic transplantation in patients with chronic lymphocytic leukemia in the era of novel therapies: A review

Abstract

Chronic lymphocytic leukemia (CLL) is the most common form of adult leukemia and is characterized by a highly variable clinical course. In the past decade, several prognostic risk factors have been identified facilitating the classification of CLL into various risk groups. Patients with poor risk disease, such as poor cytogenetics or relapsing after purine-based analogues, had limited therapeutic options, with allogeneic hematopoietic cell transplantation (allo-SCT) the only known therapy with curative potential. More recently, the introduction of novel agents inhibiting the B-cell receptor pathway, and the early success with chimeric antigen receptor T cells offers an effective and relatively safe option for this poor prognostic group which holds promise in the future. Alternatively, the use of reduced intensity conditioning regimens in the allo-SCT setting has led to a significant decrease in nonrelapse mortality to 16-23%, making it an attractive therapeutic option. No recent guidelines have been developed since these novel therapies became available regarding the optimal time to allo-SCT in this patient population. The advent of these novel and highly active therapeutic agents, therefore, warrants a reappraisal of the role and timing of allo-SCT in patients with CLL. In this article, we summarize the literature regarding the novel therapeutic agents available today as well as focus on the efficacy and safety of allo-SCT. © 2014, SAGE Publications. All rights reserved.