TriangleFOR PATIENTS · SOURCE READING
Immunotherapy
Source: Chronic Lymphocytic Leukemia Treatment (PDQ®)–Patient Version, National Cancer Institute.
Source updated: October 15, 2024 · Captured 2026-09-09.
Selected source text with whitespace normalised. This Triangle page is not an NCI PDQ summary. Independent clinical review is pending.
Context: Treatment Option Overview / The following types of treatment are used:
Immunotherapy is a treatment that uses the patient's immune system to fight cancer. Substances made by the body or made in a laboratory are used to boost, direct, or restore the body's natural defenses against cancer.
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Immunomodulating agent: Lenalidomide stimulates T cells to kill leukemia cells. It may be used alone or with rituximab in patients with symptomatic or progressive, recurrent, or refractory CLL.
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CAR T-cell therapy: This treatment changes the patient's T cells (a type of immune system cell) so they will attack certain proteins on the surface of cancer cells. T cells are taken from the patient and special receptors are added to their surface in the laboratory. The changed cells are called chimeric antigen receptor (CAR) T cells. The CAR T cells are grown in the laboratory and given to the patient by infusion. The CAR T cells multiply in the patient's blood and attack cancer cells. CAR T-cell therapy is being studied in the treatment of recurrent or refractory CLL.
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Preserved source evidence · Independent clinical review pending · Not medical advice