FDA Approves Venclexta for Certain CLL in Patients

The FDA has granted accelerated approval to venetoclax (Venclexta, AbbVie/Genentech) to treat patients who have chronic lymphocytic leukemia (CLL) with the chromosome abnormality 17p deletion, and who have been treated with at least one prior therapy. Venetoclax is the first FDA-approved treatment that targets the B-cell lymphoma 2 (BCL-2) protein, which blocks apoptosis and is overexpressed in many CLL cells.