Treatment of older patients with chronic lymphocytic leukemia

Chronic lymphocytic leukemia (CLL) is typically a disease of older individuals. Yet most of the literature on various chemotherapeutic regimens includes patients who are 10 to 15 years younger than the median age at diagnosis of this disease. The older patient population is grossly underrepresented in clinical trials. Currently available therapies are often too toxic for this older patient population, so their efficacy is reduced. This review discusses some of the results of treatment in older patients with CLL. A discussion of factors that often affect outcome, such as comorbidities, renal function, bone marrow reserve, and infection, are also reviewed, along with quality of life.