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VIDEO: Combination therapies with immune checkpoints remain a challenge in Hodgkin lymphoma
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In a series of videos, Stephen M. Ansell, MD, PhD, chair of the lymphoma group at Mayo Clinic in Rochester, Minnesota, and HemOnc Today Editorial Board member discusses several promising novel therapies that have been developed and have demonstrated high response rates in patients with lymphoma, Hodgkin lymphoma and non-Hodgkin lymphoma.
In this video, Ansell discusses immune checkpoint therapies and how this treatment is effectively blocking antibodies that stop the immune system from being suppressed.
He highlights the effectiveness of both nivolumab (Opdivo, Bristol-Myers Squibb) and pembrolizumab (Keytruda, Merck) in treating patients with Hodgkin’s lymphoma.
Treatment with nivolumab and pembrolizumab have demonstrated high response rates and have been well-tolerated, Ansell said. “Many patients are continuing on therapy and some patients are now beyond 2 years of treatment and continue to tolerate the treatment well.”
Although Ansell says the developments of these novel therapies are presenting promising approaches to treating Hodgkin lymphoma, he acknowledges that there will be challenges in the future.
“[One of the challenges] is getting all patients with lymphoma to benefit,” he said. “The next step there is to see how can we bring other components of treatment with immune checkpoint therapy and really get after the cancer cells in a more efficient fashion.”