• Christmas message
• Our year in review
• Nursing conference 2023
• Do you understand the medications approval process?
• Patient treatment support kits- Now available
• Education in 2023
• Recent articles and updates of interest
• Patient support groups

Merry Christmas from everyone at Lymphoma Australia 

Thank you all for your amazing support to Lymphoma Australia during 2022 as it has been a very busy year.

Lymphoma Australia will continue to support the Lymphoma community in 2023 and beyond as we will never underestimate the impact that a cancer diagnosis can have on the patient, their family, and friends. Being diagnosed and living with a cancer that has now grown to more than 80 subtypes can be challenging even for the most informed person.

Our work will always be underpinned by our dedication to take the “fear of the unknown out of the lymphoma journey”, ensuring no - one is alone and that there is equitable access to information, support, and treatments for all Australians.

To everyone who has donated to our cause or been involved in raising awareness, thank you so very much! We couldn’t do our work without your support.

Lymphoma Australia will continue to advocate for equitable and fast access for treatments for all Australians impacted by Lymphoma.

As 2022 draws to a close we take the time to be with family and friends and we remember those who have lost their lives to Lymphoma or are currently undergoing treatment. Let’s take this time to reflect and embrace each other as we move towards a new year.

From all of us at Lymphoma Australia we wish you a safe and happy holiday season.

Warm regards,                                                           

Sharon Winton

CEO Lymphoma Australia

The Lymphoma Australia Conference 2023 is now open...

Please share this event with your colleagues that may be interested. It is an opportunity not to be missed. 

Early Bird registrations are only $100 for the 2days - this sale will end on 30th April!

Do you understand the medicines approval process? 

I must admit, until I started working with Lymphoma Australia, I didn't fully understand the medications approval process in Australia. This is a bit of summary to explain the process that I have learnt along the way....

In Australia, medicines are registered for use by the Therapeutic Goods Administration, which means they are considered effective and safe for use in Australia. However, many medicines are expensive and need to be publicly funded before they are widely available for use in Australia.

A government advisory committee called the Pharmaceutical Benefits Advisory Committee (PBAC) is responsible for deciding whether to recommend a medicine for public subsidy. Once this committee provides a positive recommendation, it is then up to the Federal Government
to list the medicine on the Pharmaceutical Benefits Scheme (PBS). 
This committee includes doctors, health professionals, health economists and consumer representatives.

When a new treatment is considered, there is an opportunity for consumer engagement with those with that have the condition, as well as their carers and family. 

In the last few months Lymphoma Australia have made submissions for the subsidised access of ibrtunib and venetoclax in combination for first line CLL, acalaburitnib and obinutzumab also for first line CLL and Evusheld for all lymphoma patients.

Patient treatment support kits are available 

This kit contains many essential items for anyone undergoing treatment for Lymphoma, such as a reliable thermometer, soft toothbrush, mouthcare products, specialised skin products and more.  Plus it comes contained in a convenient bag that can be reused for medications or information for appointments.  

Patients who are currently undergoing treatment are able to receive these. So, if you think your patients could benefit from these amazing products, it's very simple. 

1. You can refer your patients on the homepage of our website by clicking "refer your patient"  patients can refer themselves
2. We then express post them directly to your patients.

We are busy planning the nursing education content for 2023 and the  sessions will recommence in late January. To register for a session, click the session title and follow the links. 

CAR-T and lymphoma Join Dr Siok Tey (RBWH) and A/CNC Meg Conomos (Fiona Stanley Hospital) to gain some understanding and insight into CAR-T therapy. 
23/01/23 at 7pm QLD time

ASH wrap up for nurses ASH is one of the biggest haematology conferences in the world and has just wrapped up in New Orleans. Many practice changing abstracts are presented at ASH and this is an excellent opportunity for nurses to get this information. Join A/Prof Chan Cheah for this session as he gives us the run down. 
23/02/23 at 5.30pm QLD time

Intersectionality in medicine- more details will be available shortly. 

Understanding clinical trials- more details will be available shortly.

If you have a topic you would like covered, please reach out to us nurse@lymphoma.org.au.

We are booking inservice sessions for hospitals on different lymphoma subtypes and the services Lymphoma Australia offers. If you would like a session booked in please contact nurse@lymphoma.org.au and we can lock something in. 

ASH is one of the biggest International haematology conferences in the world, and it has just wrapped up in New Orleans. Below are summary's of a few of the abstract submissions. 

Subcutaneous epcoritamab with rituximab + lenalidomide in patients with relapsed or refractory follicular lymphoma- a phase 1/2 trial update. Advanced stage follicular lymphoma is the most common, indolent subtype, however it remains incurable. In an ongoing phase 1/2 trial, patients received epcoritamab in combination with rituximab and lenalidomide. The overall response rate was 100%, with complete metabolic response in 96% of patients. Demonstrating encouraging results, this combination will be further explored in a phase 3 trial to evaluate epcoritamab in combination with R² versus R² alone. 

Analysis of 372 adult allograft recipients reveals associations between non-European ancestry, low socioeconomic status (SES), and receipt of HLA disparate grafts. While both race, ethnicity and social status impact care delivery for allograft candidates and recipients, the association between ancestry and SES and their interaction with donor type are not fully established. The study demonstrated an intersectionality between ancestry and SES and an association with donor type with the most vulnerable patients receiving the most complex transplants. Successful transplant access to minority patients is contingent upon extending financial hardship programs. Interventions to advance equity require better SES classification or detailed recording of household income. 

Glofitamab for relapsed or refractory diffuse large b cell lymphoma. R/R DLBCL patients are associated with very poor outcomes and don't tend to respond well to current available treatment options. 155 patients were enrolled and received pre treatment with obinutuzumab to mitigate cytokine release syndrome, followed by 12 cycles of glofitamab monotherapy. At a median follow up of 12.6 mths, 36% of patients had a complete response. Similar results were also seen in the patients who had previously had CAR-T therapy, with 35% achieving a complete metabolic remission. 

Triangle: Autologous Transplantation after a Rituximab/Ibrutinib/ara-c Containing Induction in Generalized Mantle Cell Lymphoma - a Randomized European MCL Network Trial.  This study looked at whether the addition of ibrutinib to induction therapy and as maintenance therapy might improve outcomes for MCL patients. Current standard of care is high dose cytarabine chemotherapy followed by ASCT, and rituximab maintenance. The study enrolled 900 patients and results showed an overall survival advantage with the addition of ibrutinib to current standard of care therapy. Although longer follow up is warranted, this study is potentially practice changing, for newly diagnosed MCL patients. 

FLIPI24: An improved International prognostic model developed on early events in follicular lymphoma. Early events are associated with inferior outcomes in follicular lymphoma and increased risk of death due to refractory FL. The FLIPI24 model uses 5 variables: age, haemoglobin, white blood cell count, LDH and beta- 2- microglobulin. The FLIPI24 was rigorously developed, tested and externally validated. Novel features of the model include the significance of blood based measurements in the model, which appear to capture underlying tumour burden and host biology. 

Randomized phase 3 ALPINE study demonstrated that zanubruitnib shows superior overall response rate and PFS over ibrutinib in patients with relapsed/ refractory CLL. A total of 652 patients were randomized to receive zanubrutinib, a next generation BTKi or ibrutinib. There were no grade five adverse events due to cardiac disorders with zanubrutinib compared to 6 with ibrutinib. Investigators concluded that zanubrutinib has proven superiority to ibrutinib in both efficacy and safety with R/ R CLL/SLL. 

Do you follow us on socials?

If you use social media, it is a great way to keep up to date with everything  that is happening for you professionally and also for patients.

Did you know we have a closed nursing facebook group called Lymphoma Australia Special Practice Network? We also post all of our updates and our on our main facebook and Instagram pages, just search Lymphoma Australia and you should find us. 

Patient Support Groups 

We regularly host patient support groups, online and in person.  Patients really benefit from speaking with others and connecting with people going through similar experiences. To make sure your patients have this opportunity you can do either of these things:
1. Refer your patients on the homepage of our website so we can email them with this information. 
2. Check out our events calendar on the homepage as we list all of the details there.