Background: Lenalidomide combined with rituximab (R2) has shown complimentary clinical activity and is a tolerable regimen in both untreated and relapsed or refractory (R/R) patients with indolent non-Hodgkin lymphoma. Patients with advanced age at diagnosis are considered to be high risk, supporting post-hoc subgroup analyses by age, with a focus on patients aged ≥ 70 years from the MAGNIFY study.
Methods: MAGNIFY is a multicenter, phase IIIb trial in patients with R/R follicular lymphoma (FL) grades 1-3b, transformed FL (tFL), marginal zone lymphoma (MZL), or mantle cell lymphoma (MCL; NCT01996865) exploring optimal lenalidomide duration. Lenalidomide 20 mg on days 1-21 of a 28-day cycle + rituximab 375 mg/m2/week cycle 1 and then every 8 weeks starting with cycle 3 (R2) are administered for 12 cycles followed by 1:1 randomization in patients with stable disease, partial response, or complete response/complete response unconfirmed (CR/CRu) to R2 vs rituximab maintenance for 18 months. Data presented here focus on induction R2 in efficacy-evaluable FL grade 1-3a and MZL patients (FL grade 3b, tFL, and MCL not included) receiving ≥ 1 treatment with baseline/postbaseline assessments. The primary end point is progression-free survival (PFS) by 1999 International Working Group criteria. Post-hoc analyses were performed by analyzing data from patients aged ≥ 70 years at time of study entry.
Results: As of November 30, 2019, 393 patients have enrolled and 152 (39%) were aged ≥ 70 years. Baseline characteristics including histology, disease status, and prior treatments of patients ≥ 70 and the overall population are shown in the table. Median PFS in the ≥ 70 subgroup was 36.0 months (95% CI, 28.3-NR). Overall response rate and CR/CRu were 75% and 38%, with a median duration of response that was not reached (95% CI, 27.1-NR). Efficacy results for the overall population are shown in the table. In patients ≥ 70 the most common (≥ 20%) any-grade treatment emergent adverse events (TEAEs) were fatigue (44%), neutropenia (41%), diarrhea (34%), constipation (34%), and nausea (27%). Neutropenia (35%) was the only grade 3/4 TEAE occurring in > 10% of patients (febrile neutropenia occurred in 3 patients [2%]). TEAEs led to lenalidomide dose reduction in 69 patients (46%) and discontinuation in 40 patients (26%). Seventy-eight patients ≥ 70 (51%) completed all 12 cycles of induction treatment, and 72 (47%) have entered the maintenance phase. Sixty-one patients ≥ 70 (40%), compared to 35% of patients in overall population, prematurely discontinued both lenalidomide and rituximab, due to TEAEs (n = 26; 17%), progressive disease (n = 15; 10%), patient withdrawal (n = 12; 8%), death (n = 5; 3%), and other reasons (n = 3; 2%). Neutropenia was the only TEAE leading to discontinuation of lenalidomide in more than 2 patients (n = 10; 7%).
Conclusions: Similar to findings in the overall population, R2 treatment in advanced-age patients with R/R FL and MZL resulted in encouraging efficacy, and with close attention to dose reduction there is a tolerable safety profile.
Lansigan:BMS Steering Committee for MAGNIFY Program: Membership on an entity's Board of Directors or advisory committees; Spectrum Pharma: Consultancy, Research Funding; BMS: Consultancy; Seattle Genetics: Consultancy. Andorsky:AstraZeneca: Research Funding; Celgene: Membership on an entity's Board of Directors or advisory committees, Research Funding; CTI: Research Funding. Coleman:Novartis Pharmaceuticals: Research Funding; Merck Sharp & Dohme Corp.: Research Funding; Boston BIoMedical, Inc.: Research Funding; BeiGene: Research Funding; Acerta: Research Funding; Innocare: Research Funding; ARCUS Biosciences: Research Funding; AstraZeneca Pharmaceuticals, LP (Acerta Pharma BV Trials): Research Funding; AstraZeneca Pharmaceuticals, LP: Research Funding; BMS (Celgene Corporation): Research Funding; Eli Lilly and Company: Research Funding; EMD Serono Research and Development Institute Inc.: Research Funding; Genetech (F. Hoffman-LaRoche Ltd): Research Funding; Hutchinson MediPharma, LTD: Research Funding; Incyte Corporation: Research Funding; Ipsen Group: Research Funding; Karyopharma Therapeutics, Inc.: Research Funding; Klus Pharma, Inc.: Research Funding; MeiPharma, Inc.: Research Funding; Seattle Genetics: Research Funding. Yacoub:Novartis: Honoraria, Speakers Bureau; Agios: Speakers Bureau; Incyte: Speakers Bureau; Hylapharm: Current equity holder in private company; Cara therapeutics: Current equity holder in publicly-traded company; Ardelyx: Current equity holder in publicly-traded company; Dynavax: Current equity holder in publicly-traded company. Melear:AstraZeneca: Speakers Bureau; Janssen: Speakers Bureau. Fanning:Prisma Health: Current Employment; Abbvie: Consultancy; TG Therapeautics: Consultancy; Bristol Myers Squibb: Consultancy, Speakers Bureau; Takeda: Consultancy, Speakers Bureau; Sanofi Aventis: Speakers Bureau. Kolibaba:Compass Oncology: Ended employment in the past 24 months; Atara Biotech: Consultancy; TG Therapeutics: Consultancy, Membership on an entity's Board of Directors or advisory committees, Research Funding; Sumitomo Dainippon Pharma Oncology: Consultancy, Other: TRAVEL, ACCOMMODATIONS, EXPENSES (paid by any for-profit health care company; AbbVie: Research Funding; Acerta: Research Funding; Celgene: Research Funding; Genentech: Research Funding; Gilead: Research Funding; Pharmacyclics: Research Funding; Seattle Genetics: Research Funding; Verastem: Honoraria; Janssen: Research Funding; Novartix: Research Funding. Reynolds:IHA Hematology/Oncology Consultants: Current Employment. Nowakowski:Ryvu: Consultancy, Membership on an entity's Board of Directors or advisory committees, Other; Nanostrings: Research Funding; Seattle Genetics: Consultancy; Curis: Consultancy; MorphoSys: Consultancy, Research Funding; Roche: Consultancy, Research Funding; Kymera: Consultancy; Denovo: Consultancy; Kite: Consultancy; Celgene/BMS: Consultancy, Research Funding. Gharibo:Bayer: Ended employment in the past 24 months; Bristol Myers Squibb: Current Employment, Current equity holder in publicly-traded company. Ahn:BMS: Current Employment, Current equity holder in publicly-traded company. Li:BMS: Current Employment, Current equity holder in publicly-traded company. Rummel:Celgene: Consultancy, Honoraria; Janssen: Honoraria; Amgen GmbH: Honoraria; Roche: Honoraria; Novartis Pharma GmbH: Honoraria. Sharman:Bristol Meyers Squibb: Consultancy, Research Funding; Celgene: Consultancy, Research Funding; Roche: Consultancy, Research Funding; Acerta: Consultancy, Research Funding; TG Therapeutics: Consultancy, Research Funding; BeiGene: Research Funding; Genentech: Consultancy, Research Funding; AbbVie: Consultancy, Research Funding; Pfizer: Consultancy, Research Funding; Pharmacyclics: Consultancy, Research Funding; AstraZeneca: Consultancy, Research Funding.
Author notes
Asterisk with author names denotes non-ASH members.
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