ASH 2020 | Targeting persisting stem cells in search for a novel CML treatment

Andreas Hochhaus • 27 Nov 2020

ASH 2020

Andreas Hochhaus, MD, Klinik für Innere Medizin II, Jena, Germany, highlights the new approaches in the treatment of relapsed chronic myeloid leukemia (CML) patients which will be discussed at the American Society of Hematology (ASH) Annual Meeting and Exposition 2020. In CML, even when a deep molecular response is achieved, 50% of the patients will relapse. Ongoing research is aiming to identify pathways whose activation causes the persistence of stem cells in CML. A potential target is the BCL-2 pathway, in which the use of BCL-2 inhibitors might allow us to bring more patients into treatment-free remission for a longer period of time. This interview took place during the 62nd American Society of Hematology (ASH) Annual Meeting and Exposition, 2020.