New drug targets Tough-to-Treat blood cancer

This study tested whether the drug acalabrutinib could help control chronic lymphocytic leukemia (CLL) or small lymphocytic lymphoma (SLL) in people whose cancer had returned after treatment or who had a specific high-risk genetic change called 17p deletion. The trial involved 48 adults with active disease symptoms and measured how well their cancer responded to treatment. Researchers wanted to see if blocking a specific protein in cancer cells could shrink tumors and control the disease.