Refractory Chronic Lymphocytic Leukemia/Small Lymphocytic Lymphoma

This phase II trial studies how well the addition of nemtabrutinib to lisocabtagene maraleucel in treating patients with chronic lymphocytic leukemia/small lymphocytic lymphoma (CLL/SLL) that has come back after a period of improvement (relapsed) or that does not respond to treatment (refractory). Nemtabrutinib may stop the growth of cancer cells by blocking some of the enzymes needed for cell growth. Lisocabtagene maraleucel is a type of treatment called chimeric antigen receptor (CAR) T-cell therapy, in which a patient's T-cells (a type of immune system cell) are changed in the laboratory so they will attack cancer cells. T-cells are taken from a patient's blood. Then the gene for a special receptor that binds to a certain protein on the patient's cancer cells is added to the T-cells in the laboratory. The special receptor is called a chimeric antigen receptor (CAR). Large numbers of the CAR T-cells are grown in the laboratory and given to the patient by infusion for treatment. Adding nemtabrutinib to lisocabtagene maraleucel may be an effective treatment for relapsed/refractory CLL/SLL.

This phase I trial tests zanubrutinib in combination with sonrotoclax for treating underrepresented ethnic and racial minorities with B-cell non-Hodgkin lymphoma that has come back after a period of improvement (relapsed) or that has not responded to previous treatment (refractory). Many racial and ethnic minorities face additional treatment challenges which may lead to poorer outcomes, however, there are fewer racial and ethnic minorities participating in clinical trials. Zanubrutinib, a type of tyrosine kinase inhibitor, blocks a protein called Bruton tyrosine kinase (BTK), which may help keep cancer cells from growing. Sonrotoclax works by blocking a protein called B-cell lymphoma-2 (Bcl-2). This protein helps certain types of blood cancer cells to survive and grow. When sonrotoclax blocks Bcl-2, it slows down or stops the growth of cancer cells and causes them to die. Zanubrutinib and sonrotoclax have been shown to be an effective treatment for B-cell cancers. Giving zanubrutinib in combination with sonrotoclax may be effective in treating ethnic and racial minorities with relapsed or refractory B-cell non-Hodgkin lymphoma.