COVID-19 in patients with chronic lymphocytic leukemia: a multicenter analysis by the Czech CLL study group

• Published in: Annals of hematology 2023-04, Vol.102 (4), p.811-817
• Main Authors: Šimkovič, Martin, Turcsányi, Peter, Špaček, Martin, Mihályová, Jana, Ryznerová, Pavlína, Maco, Mária, Vodárek, Pavel, Écsiová, Dominika, Poul, Hynek, Móciková, Heidi, Zuchnická, Jana, Panovská, Anna, Lekaa, Mohammad, Oršulová, Martina, Prchlíková, Adéla, Stejskal, Lukáš, Mašlejová, Stanislava, Brychtová, Yvona, Bezděková, Lucie, Papajík, Tomáš, Lysák, Daniel, Trněný, Marek, Smolej, Lukáš, Doubek, Michael
• Format: Article
• Language: English
• Subjects: Adult; Aged; Aged, 80 and over; Cohort Studies; Coronaviruses; COVID-19; COVID-19 - complications; COVID-19 Testing; Czech Republic - epidemiology; Female; Hematology; Humans; Leukemia; Leukemia, Lymphocytic, Chronic, B-Cell - drug therapy; Leukemia, Lymphocytic, Chronic, B-Cell - epidemiology; Male; Medicine; Medicine & Public Health; Middle Aged; Oncology; Original; Original Article; Phosphatidylinositol 3-Kinases
• ISSN: 0939-5555; 1432-0584
• DOI: 10.1007/s00277-023-05147-z

Patients with chronic lymphocytic leukemia (CLL) have a high risk of poor outcomes related to coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19). This multicenter cohort study evaluated the impact of COVID-19 infection on the population of CLL patients in the Czech Republic. Between March 2020 and May 2021, 341 patients (237 males) with CLL and COVID-19 disease were identified. The median age was 69 years (range 38–91). Out of the 214 (63%) patients with the history of therapy for CLL, 97 (45%) were receiving CLL-directed treatment at diagnosis of COVID-19: 29% Bruton tyrosine kinase inhibitor (BTKi), 16% chemoimmunotherapy (CIT), 11% Bcl-2 inhibitor, and 4% phosphoinositide 3-kinase inhibitor. Regarding the severity of COVID-19, 60% pts required admission to the hospital, 21% pts were admitted to the intensive care unit (ICU), and 12% received invasive mechanical ventilation. The overall case fatality rate was 28%. Major comorbidities, age over 72, male gender, CLL treatment in history, CLL-directed treatment at COVID-19 diagnosis were associated with increased risk of death. Of note, concurrent therapy with BTKi compared to CIT was not associated with better outcome of COVID-19.