Drug-Induced Hemolytic Crisis During Ibrutinib plus Venetoclax for the Treatment of Mantle-Cell Lymphoma: A Rare Hematologic Adverse Reaction

Abstract

With increasing development of novel targeted agents, several subtypes of lymphoma are stepping into the chemotherapy-free era. Combination of BTK inhibitor ibrutinib and BCL-2 inhibitor venetoclax has been proved to be highly effective in the treatment of relapsed/refractory mantle cell lymphoma (MCL). The most common adverse events of this combined therapy are gastrointestinal, such as diarrhea, nausea or vomiting, and gastroesophageal reflux. However, hemolysis is a rare event. In this paper, we reported a case of 50-year-old MCL patient who experienced hemolytic crisis during treatment with ibrutinib and venetoclax. We believe that this case demonstrates a rare but potentially lethal adverse event, and emphasizes the need for suspicion of this adverse reaction during this combination therapy.