Role of precision medicine in the treatment of chronic lymphocytic leukaemia

© 2016 Informa UK Limited, trading as Taylor & Francis Group. Chronic lymphocytic leukemia (CLL), the most common indolent B-cell malignancy in the Western World, is characterized by progressive bone marrow failure, lymphadenopathy and a risk of transformation to high-grade lymphoma. The number of highly effective treatments is increasing and can be broadly separated into two different groups; monoclonal antibodies and novel small molecule therapy. These together with advances in our understanding of the molecular make-up of CLL, easy access to tumor cells from peripheral blood and its heterogeneous clinical course make CLL an excellent model for bringing precision medicine to the bedside. Precision medicine in CLL has two important goals: firstly effective prognostication at all stages of the disease and secondly to help direct treatment and predict response, an altogether more difficult objective.