New nonchemotherapy treatment options for cutaneous T-cell lymphomas an update

Mycosis fungoides (MF) and Sézary syndrome (SS) are T cell lymphomas of the skin with prolonged clinical course requiring multiple lines of therapy in a patient's lifetime. The treatment of MF/SS with available agents is complicated by the differential response in skin, lymph nodes, and blood. Advances in understanding the biology of the disease have led to therapies with better efficacy and improvement in quality of life for patients with relapsed and refractory disease.

This review will outline clinical data for novel biologics including monoclonal antibodies, small molecule inhibitors, and immunotherapeutic approaches such as CAR-T and bispecific antibodies.

Nonchemotherapy options which avoid generalized immunosuppression are a preferred consideration for patients with MF/SS, given the compromised skin integument of these patients. Targeted therapies including brentuximab vedotin, lacutamab, denileukin diftitox, and mogamulizumab have shown activity in registrational trials. Novel agents which modulate tumor microenvironment and upregulate tumor-specific immune responses have been in clinical trials, including bispecific antibodies recruiting immune effectors, agents eradicating suppressive microenvironments, and engineered T cells targeting tumor epitopes. Checkpoint inhibitors may play a role in MF/SS but their role has not been well defined, and they may induce hyper progression.