The TOP-FLOR Phase II clinical trial for patients newly diagnosed with follicular lymphoma (FL) has enrolled the 40th patient, marking the end of recruitment for the first two cohorts.
The patients will be closely monitored at five sites across Australia for how their lymphoma is responding, and for any adverse effects over the course of treatment.
Instead of chemotherapy, which is the standard of care treatment for FL, patients will receive immunotherapy, cancer drugs that boost the immune system to help it kill cancer cells.
Patients with FL often face intensive treatments including chemotherapy, bone marrow transplant and immunotherapy over many years, resulting in a long-term impact on quality of life.
Prof Eliza Hawkes, Chief Principal Investigator of the trial, said:
“TOP-FLOR trial participants have generously provided biospecimens, which will help us understand the biology of response to treatment in this population.
“We are now able to commence our exciting work in the laboratory to start teasing out this important information, which we hope will allow us to predict in the future who will respond.”
If the study is successful, it is hoped that immunotherapy could be offered to these patients as an alternative to chemotherapy.
The TOP-FLOR trial is active in regional centres in Victoria and WA, making it accessible to FL patients outside of metropolitan areas.
“Inclusion of these excellent regional centres with experienced clinical trial doctors not only decreases travel burden for the participants, but ensures widespread experience in cutting-edge treatments for site staff,” said Prof Hawkes.
This is an important milestone for FL research, and we thank all sites and patients for their participation.
This trial is sponsored by ONJCRI, with funding and drug supply provided by Bristol Myers Squibb.
