ASH 2020 | Phase II trial of navitoclax and ruxolitinib in high-risk R/R myelofibrosis

Claire Harrison, MD, DM, FRCP, FRCPath, Guy’s and St Thomas’ NHS Foundation Trust, London, UK, discusses the results of a Phase II trial (NCT03222609) of navitoclax and ruxolitinib (rux) combination therapy in relapsed/refractory (R/R) myelofibrosis. Treatment choices following rux failure are limited in myelofibrosis patients. Based on evidence of clinical responses in patients who no longer respond to rux alone, navitoclax and rux was given to 34 patients with prior rux failure and high-molecular-risk (HMR) mutations or high total number of gene mutations. The results showed that patients achieved clinically meaningful reduction in spleen volume, total symptom scores and bone marrow fibrosis grade. Driver gene variant allele frequency was also reduced by over 10% in around half the cohort. Notably, these responses were all independent of number of genes mutated and HMR mutations. Analyses of the combination’s mechanism of action of ongoing. This interview took place during the 62nd American Society of Hematology (ASH) Annual Meeting and Exposition, 2020.