Kite, a Gilead Company (GILD), presented a new analysis demonstrating that second-line therapy with Yescarta (axicabtagene ciloleucel) delivers consistent benefits for patients with relapsed/refractory large B-cell lymphoma (R/R LBCL). Importantly, these benefits extend even to patients who are ineligible for the previous standard of care, which involved high-dose chemotherapy followed by autologous stem cell transplant (ASCT).
The findings were based on a combined analysis of four-year data from the landmark Phase 3 ZUMA-7 pivotal study of Yescarta in R/R LBCL, alongside two-year data from the Phase 2 ALYCANTE study. ALYCANTE was designed by the French collaborative group LYSA and sponsored by LYSARC to specifically evaluate transplant-ineligible patients.
After two years of follow-up, overall survival (OS) rates were encouraging: 64.9% in the pooled analysis, 62.8% in ZUMA-7, and 70.8% in ALYCANTE. Historically, outcomes for R/R LBCL patients were poor, with two-year survival rates of only about 20% prior to the advent of CAR T-cell therapies. Event-free survival (EFS) rates were 45.2% in the pooled analysis, 45.4% in ZUMA-7, and 44.7% in ALYCANTE. Progression-free survival (PFS) rates were similarly strong at 47.4%, 47.6%, and 46.8%, respectively.
Additional measures reinforced the therapy's impact. After three months, 55.6% of patients in the pooled analysis achieved a complete metabolic response (CMR), with 51.2% in ZUMA-7 and 67.7% in ALYCANTE. At one year post-treatment, the overall response rate (ORR) was 46.6% in the pooled analysis, 46.5% in ZUMA-7, and 46.8% in ALYCANTE. Among patients who responded, 61% maintained their response at 12 months, with duration of response (DOR) rates of 61.0% pooled, 60.6% in ZUMA-7, and 62.1% in ALYCANTE.
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May 22, 2026 14:46 ET Minutes of the latest Fed policy session was the highlight of the week along with survey data on the U.S. housing market. In Europe, survey data signaled the trends in the euro area private sector. Further, consumer price inflation data from the U.K. was in focus. In Asia, various economic indicators from China drew attention to the health of the economy.