Bortezomib (Velcade) has been approved today in the UK for the first-line treatment of mantle cell lymphoma (MCL), an aggressive subtype of blood cancers, collectively known as Non-Hodgkin Lymphoma (NHL).

Recent clinical trial results have shown that patients with previously untreated MCL, who were unsuitable for blood stem-cell transplantation, had an improvement in progression free survival (PFS) compared to the control arm when treated with bortezomib in combination with rituximab, cyclophosphamide, doxorubicin and prednisone (VR-CAP).

In the UK, approximately one in every twenty-five people will be diagnosed with a blood-based cancer during their lifetime.¹

NHL is the sixth most common cancer in the UK, with latest data showing that more than 45,000 people are currently living with the disease.²

Of these, 1 in 20 people are affected by MCL (5%),² which has a poor prognosis with fewer than three in ten patients surviving the disease for five years or more.³

Professor Simon Rule, Consultant Haematologist at Derriford Hospital, Plymouth, said: “The launch of bortezomib is a step forward in the treatment of MCL and represents a significant advance in this disease setting.”

“Bortezomib is already a well-known and widely used drug for the treatment of multiple myeloma. This launch in MCL is exciting as it represents a real change in the blood-based cancer treatment landscape and means that patients with the disease can experience a sustained disease-free period.”

References

1. Leukaemia and Lymphoma Research. Newly diagnosed with blood cancer. Available at: https://leukaemialymphomaresearch.org.uk/sites/default/files/newly_diagnosed_pdf_online_glossary.pdf. Accessed: March 2015.

2. Cancer Research UK. Non-Hodgkin Lymphoma Incidence Statistics. Available at: http://www.cancerresearchuk.org/cancer-info/cancerstats/types/nhl/incidence/uk-nonhodgkin-lymphoma-incidence-statistics. Accessed: March 2015.

3. Cancer Research UK. Non-Hodgkin Lymphoma [NHL] Key Stats. Available at: http://www.cancerresearchuk.org/cancer-info/cancerstats/keyfacts/non-hodgkin-lymphoma/uk-nonhodgkin-lymphoma-statistics. Accessed: March 2015.

Source: Janssen