Tag: Peter Martin MD

REDLAMP 10: Can Physical Activity Lower the Risk of Non-Hodgkin Lymphoma?

The association between physical activity and a lower risk of non-Hodgkin lymphoma is not well proven and few studies have established any link. However, Cancer Epidemiology, Biomarkers & Prevention published results from a case controlled study on physical activity and the risk of non-Hodgkin lymphoma. In this video Dr. Peter Martin explains the rationale of this case study, its findings, and important takeaways for people who may be at risk for non-Hodgkin lymphoma.

Previous #REDLAMP entries can be viewed on our Youtube channel.

We encourage you to follow the Lymphoma Program on Twitter, Youtube, and Facebook where we will highlight new videos are about research publications as they are released. We also welcome your feedback, suggestions and questions about this project. If you have other questions about our lymphoma program or clinical trials or would like to see one of our lymphoma specialists, please contact us at 212-746-2919.

New Clinical Trial: A Phase 2 Study to Evaluate the Efficacy & Safety of Copanlisib in Patients with Relapsed/Refractory MCL, who Failed Ibrutinib Treatment or Were Unable to Tolerate Ibrutinib

The Weill Cornell Lymphoma Program has recently opened a new clinical trial for men and women with refractory MCL, who have failed ibrutinib treatment or were unable to tolerate ibrutinib. The study sponsor is the Bayer Corporation, and the principal investigator at Weill Cornell is Peter Martin M.D.. For more information about the study, please call Amelyn Rodgriguez, RN at (212) 746-1362 or e-mail Amelyn at amr2017@med.cornell.edu.

Key Eligibility

  • Men and women age 18 and older with histologically confirmed MCL.
  • Ibrutinib as the last anti-cancer treatment.
  • Availability of fresh tumor tissue.
  • Detailed eligibility reviewed when you contact the study team.

Study Summary 

This clinical trial is for men and women with mantle cell lymphoma (MCL) who were previously treated for this disease and who failed ibrutinib treatment or were unable to tolerate ibrutinib treatment.

While treatment of MCL with ibrutinib has yielded promising efficacy, clinicians and researchers are reporting the development of ibrutinib resistance. Clinically, ibrutinib resistance leaves MCL patients without an established recourse for further treatment. Offering a treatment targeting a different pathway provides an opportunity to fulfill an unmet medical need in this patient population. In addition, some patients are unable to tolerate ibrutinib treatment, leaving them without an established therapeutic option after first-line treatment failure.

This is a single-arm, open-label phase 2a study to evaluate the efficacy and safety of copanlisib monotherapy in patients with MCL, who failed ibrutinib treatment or were unable to tolerate ibrutinib. Patients will receive copanlisib IV infusion at a starting dose of 60 mg as single agent on Days 1, 8 and 15 of each 28-day treatment cycle. Patients will continue on treatment as long as they are responding to therapy and not experiencing unacceptable side effects. All patients, except for patients who object to follow-up data collection, will be followed for overall survival at least every 3 months during the survival follow-up period until death or until the end of study, whichever occurs first.

 

Brentuximab Vedotin is Well Tolerated as Second Line Therapy for Hodgkin Lymphoma

Picture1By Peter Martin, MD

On December 9, 2014 I wrote a brief post describing preliminary results from a phase II study of brentuximab vedotin as second-line therapy for Hodgkin lymphoma. The investigator-initiated study was performed jointly at City of Hope and Weill Cornell Medical College, highlighting a new era of collaboration between researchers working to improve the outcomes of people with lymphoma. The results of that study have now been published in the peer-reviewed journal Biology of Blood and Marrow Transplantation.

The purpose of the study was to evaluate the efficacy of brentuximab vedotin as second-line therapy in Hodgkin lymphoma (i.e., the lymphoma was not cured by first-line chemotherapy). Of the 37 study participants, almost half were able to proceed to potentially curative stem cell transplantation with brentuximab vedotin alone; i.e., no chemotherapy. Interestingly, all of the 13 patients that achieved a complete response with brentuximab vedotin did so within just 2 cycles (3 weeks).

This study suggests that brentuximab vedotin is efficacious in the second-line, pre-transplant setting, and that some patients may be spared cytotoxic chemotherapy prior to transplant. Moreover, responses seem to occur quickly in those people most likely to benefit, and there appears to be little rationale for continuing the same dose of brentuximab vedotin beyond 2 cycles in patients that have not achieved a complete response. Despite the clear activity of brentuximab vedotin in this setting, we do not advocate its use outside the context of a clinical trial until additional studies and longer follow up has been reported. Future studies will focus on combining brentuximab vedotin with other targeted agents with the intention of improving outcomes even more.

For more information about brentuximab vedotin look to this blog for further updates. If you are interested in Hodgkin lymphoma related clinical trials please visit our clinical trials listings.