Chimeric Antigen Receptor T Cells in Chronic Lymphocytic Leukemia: Are We Any Closer to a Cure?

Recent advances in the treatment of chronic lymphocytic leukemia (CLL) have dramatically changed outcomes for patients. Despite these improvements, CLL is still considered incurable. Chimeric antigen receptor-modified T cells have demonstrated the ability to produce long-term remissions in subsets of heavily pretreated patients with B-cell malignancies, including CLL. Unfortunately, the majority of patients with CLL do not attain durable responses. Recent studies have focused on understanding the mechanisms and predictors of response in these patients. In this review, we will discuss the literature for chimeric antigen receptor-modified T-cell therapy in CLL and highlight mechanisms of response and resistance as currently understood.