[Efficacy and safety of venetoclax combined with tyrosine kinase inhibitors and reduced-dose chemotherapy in 13 cases of minimal residual disease-positive and relapsed/refractory Ph(+) acute lymphoblastic leukemia].

Abstract

This study sought to evaluate the efficacy and safety of venetoclax (Ven) in combination with tyrosine kinase inhibitors (TKI) and reduced-dose chemotherapy for the treatment of patients with minimal residual disease (MRD) -positive and relapsed/refractory (R/R) Ph-positive acute lymphoblastic leukemia (Ph(+) ALL). A retrospective analysis was conducted on the clinical data of 13 patients with MRD-positive and relapsed Ph(+) ALL admitted between July 2015 and February 2024 at the Affiliated Cancer Hospital of Zhengzhou University. The cohort included seven males and six females, with a median age of 50 years (range: 37-71 years). Reinduction therapy consisted of Ven and TKI administration combined with reduced-dose chemotherapy. Among the 13 patients, 10 were MRD-positive, and three had R/R disease. Of the MRD-positive group, nine (90%) achieved complete molecular response (CMR), with a median time to response of 47 days (range: 30-80) ; one patient did not respond. Among the three patients who had R/R, two (66.6%) achieved complete remission, while one patient was nonresponsive. The median overall survival (OS) and relapse-free survival (RFS) time for the entire cohort were 21.5 months and 7 months, respectively. In patients who achieved CMR, the median OS and RFS time were 35 months and 34 months, respectively. Grade ≥3 hematologic adverse events occurred in five patients (38.4%) ; however, hematopoietic function recovered in all cases, and no grade ≥3 infections or organ-related adverse reactions were observed. These findings suggest that Ven combined with TKI and reduced-dose chemotherapy may be an effective and tolerable therapeutic strategy for MRD-positive and R/R Ph(+) ALL, particularly in significantly improving MRD clearance rates.