Hagop Kantarjian, MD is professor and chair of the Department of Leukemia at The University of Texas MD Anderson Cancer Center
Hagop Kantarjian, MD shared exciting updates and progress in the treatment landscape. Notably, some of the predictions made back in 2010 are now proving to be successful. Initiatives like the development of the blinatumomab and inotuzumab therapies started in 2008 and by 2010, it was clear that using them as standalone treatments would not be effective, prompting a shift towards combination therapies.
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However, progress has been gradual. Around 15 years later, challenges persist in finding the optimal treatment regimen for acute lymphoblastic leukemia. One controversial idea proposed is that the emphasis on randomized trials as the sole measure of medical progress might actually be slowing down research advancements. Instead, the speaker suggests moving towards single-arm trials and Bayesian designs in the context of acute leukemias. Despite these challenges, pediatric ALL outcomes have improved significantly, with cure rates reaching 80-90% thanks to intensive chemotherapy.