New nonchemotherapy treatment options for cutaneous T-cell lymphomas

The most common types of CTCL are mycosis fungoides (MF) and Sézary syndrome (SS). In both MF and SS, complete responses to treatment are uncommon. Recent developments and understanding of the biology of MF/SS have led to novel agents which may offer prolonged responses with less toxicity compared to conventional chemotherapy approaches.

In this review, we discuss the efficacy and safety of new nonchemotherapy treatment options including antibody agents, small molecule inhibitors, fusion proteins, and CAR T-cell therapy. We also reflect on older immunomodulatory treatments including retinoids and histone deacetylase inhibitors.

Patients with MF/SS who require systemic therapy often progress through multiple agents sequentially, thus the need for additional novel agents in the treatment armamentarium. Antibody-based therapies such as alemtuzumab are highly effective in the blood compartment of disease, while brentuximab vedotin has shown higher activity in skin and lymph nodes. Checkpoint inhibitors may play a role in treating MF/SS but may induce hyperprogression, and engineered T cells and bispecific antibodies recruiting immune effectors are being developed and may show promise in the future.