For the first time, HonorHealth Research Institute is offering a promising clinical trial for patients with specific types of lymphoma and leukemia blood cancers who no longer respond to current FDA-approved treatments.

Dr. M. Rizwan Khawaja, an associate clinical investigator at HonorHealth Research Institute’s Oncology Research Division, is leading the trial, a press release explained. The trial is investigating a new way of controlling B-cell lymphomas and chronic lymphocytic leukemia through the use of a daily pill, BGB-16673, made by the global oncology firm BeiGene.

Lymphoma is a cancer associated with the lymphoid component of the immune system, and CLL is a cancer of lymphocytes circulating in the blood.

This year, lymphomas will take the lives of more than 21,000 Americans, and leukemias will kill another 23,000, making them among the nation’s top 10 leading causes of cancer death, the release stated.  

There is no cure for CLL and many types of lymphoma. Other treatment options can require extensive preparation, hospitalization and are associated with significant toxicities, Khawaja explained.

“Many elderly patients, or those with other medical problems, are not eligible for such intense therapies,” Khawaja said. 

The BGB-16673 trial aims to provide these patients with a simple treatment option to control their disease, with fewer side effects and it’s a pill they can take at home, he added. Lymphoma and CLL mostly involve lymph nodes, which are part of the immune system and are present throughout the body.

Lymphoma can cause the lymph nodes to swell to the size of a grape or larger. Patients also present with unexplained fevers, night sweats, fatigue and weight loss, according to the release. Enlarged lymph nodes in the abdomen can press against nearby vital organs, such as the liver or kidneys, affecting their function and causing severe pain. 

Like other cancers, lymphoma can spread to other organs, such as the liver, spleen, bone marrow, and even the central nervous system.

For most patients, the cause of lymphoma is unclear. Sometimes it develops in cases where patients have compromised immune systems.

A crucial protein in the formation of B-cell lymphoma and CLL is called Bruton’s tyrosine kinase.

“There are already BTK inhibitor drugs approved by FDA to control lymphoma and CLL,” Khawaja said. “But the problem occurs when the BTK protein develops mutations, leading to resistance to BTK inhibitors.

He explained that the drug BGB-16673 is a BTK degrader, destroying that protein completely, overcoming any attempt by the cancer to mutate and evade treatment.  Even among patients whose cancer was resistant to BTK inhibitors, this drug has shown promising results so far.

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