BeiGene a global leader in oncology, has announced a new partnership with the CLL Society, the premier authority for chronic lymphocytic leukemia (CLL) and small lymphocytic lymphoma (SLL) cancer patients. Together, they are advancing the Test Before Treat™ campaign, an initiative aimed at educating healthcare providers (HCPs) and patients about the importance of biomarker testing before initiating treatment, and retesting during subsequent treatments. The goal is to help ensure each patient with CLL/SLL receives the most effective, personalized therapy. This partnership will be highlighted during the American Society of Hematology (ASH) 2024 Annual Meeting.
As scientific advancements have expanded treatment options for people with CLL, too many patients are still not receiving the therapies that work best for their individual genetic makeup. This is especially true for high-risk CLL, such as disease with deletion(17p) and/or TP53 mutations, which can lead to vastly different outcomes based on the choice of therapy. “By partnering with CLL Society for the Test Before Treat campaign, we hope to educate people living with CLL on the importance of biomarker testing and how it can help chart a course for better individualized care and ultimately improved patient outcomes,” said Dr. Mehrdad Mobasher, M.D., M.P.H., Chief Medical Officer, Hematology, BeiGene.
The Test Before Treat campaign emphasizes how a patient’s genetic profile can evolve over time and stresses the importance of using blood tests to detect mutations that offer crucial insights into the aggressiveness of the disease. These insights help guide treatment decisions and can lead to better outcomes. A key component of the campaign is a real patient’s journey, showing how biomarker testing before treatment helped him select a therapy that potentially offered better results.
About 50% of CLL/SLL patients present with high-risk molecular features that may limit the effectiveness of some treatments and increase the risk of disease progression if not treated appropriately. Of these patients, approximately 10% already have the high-risk del(17p) and/or TP53 mutation before starting treatment, and around 40% of patients will develop these mutations after relapsing or not responding to treatment. This reinforces the necessity of biomarker testing both before treatment and at each stage of the disease to ensure the most effective therapy is chosen.
Unmutated IGHV is also present in about 40% of patients with CLL/SLL, and this genetic profile is linked to a poor prognosis and significantly shorter survival when treated with chemotherapy-based regimens, regardless of disease stage. The National Comprehensive Cancer Network® (NCCN®) guidelines recommend covalent Bruton’s tyrosine kinase (BTK) inhibitors as a preferred treatment for CLL/SLL patients, both those who have previously been treated and those who have not, with or without certain genetic mutations, such as del(17p) or TP53 mutations. These BTK inhibitors target a protein within cancerous B cells, called Bruton’s tyrosine kinase, and work to inhibit the signaling that causes CLL/SLL to grow and spread.
“Highlighting the importance of biomarker testing in guiding the use of personalized targeted therapies, as opposed to outdated chemotherapy regimens, can improve patient outcomes. This is central to the CLL Society’s commitment to supporting the CLL/SLL communities through education, advocacy, support, and research,” said Dr. Brian Koffman, Co-Founder and Chief Medical Officer of CLL Society. “Through our partnership with BeiGene on the Test Before Treat campaign, we aim to empower both patients and healthcare providers with the information they need to advance shared decision-making and optimize care.”
The Test Before Treat campaign empowers CLL patients and HCPs to make informed, personalized treatment decisions. This initiative includes a comprehensive awareness strategy involving targeted digital outreach, direct-to-consumer efforts, and tailored in-office resources for healthcare providers. The campaign equips both patients and healthcare providers with the tools needed to make decisions based on each patient’s unique genetic profile, ensuring that treatment choices align with the individual’s needs and lead to better outcomes in CLL management.
