The following is a summary of “Clinical efficacy of a daratumumab-based regimen in relapsed/refractory acute leukemia: a single-center experience,” published in the July 2024 issue of Hematology by Dai et al.

Relapsed/refractory acute leukemia (R/R-AL), including its subtypes acute myeloid leukemia (AML) and acute lymphoblastic leukemia (ALL), is a challenging disease with limited treatment options and a poor prognosis, necessitating innovative therapeutic approaches targeting CD38 expression.

Researchers conducted a retrospective study to assess the clinical efficacy and safety of a daratumumab-based salvage regimen in adult patients with R/R-AL.

They analyzed clinical data from 10 adult patients with R/R-AL treated with a daratumumab-based salvage regimen (July 2018 and May 2023). The analysis comprised 7 cases of AML and 3 cases of ALL.

The results showed that 7/10 patients (70%) responded to the treatments, with a complete response (CR) rate of 60% and a partial response (PR) rate of 10%. Of these 7 responders, 3 underwent allogenic stem cell transplantation (ASCT), including 1 with a second ASCT. Among the 5 patients with R/R AML previously treated with venetoclax, 3 achieved a therapeutic response (2 CR and 1 PR) when re-treated with venetoclax and daratumumab. The median follow-up time was 6.15 months (0.9–21 months). The 12-month OS and event-free survival rates were 68.6% and 40.0%, respectively. Main AEs included grade 3 febrile neutropenia (20%) and grade 3 hematological toxicities (60%).

Investigators concluded that the daratumumab-based salvage regimen demonstrated potential for inducing remission with acceptable tolerability in patients with R/R-AL, paving the way for subsequent allogeneic stem cell transplantation.

Source: link.springer.com/article/10.1007/s00277-024-05892-9