Dr. Coombs on Second Generation BTK Inhibitors for CLL

Callie Coombs, MD, of the University of California, Irvine, is a specialist in the management of chronic lymphocytic leukemia (CLL) and small lymphocytic lymphoma. At the Society of Hematologic Oncology 2024 Annual Meeting in Houston, Texas, she gave Blood Cancers Today a brief history and overview of Bruton tyrosine kinase (BTK) inhibitors for CLL management.

Dr. Coombs explained that, although ibrutinib was a groundbreaking CLL treatment, the second generation of BTK inhibitors have been especially welcomed by clinicians for their better safety profiles. Her experience in practice using the two newer BTK inhibitors, acalabrutinib and zanubrutinib, has been very positive, and she is comfortable using either agent.

“These are just great drugs. I think it’s so much easier to put a patient on a BTK inhibitor and be able to have them stay on it, with a great quality of life, with minimal side effects, and with excellent disease control,” Dr. Coombs said.