Patients' preferences for chronic lymphocytic leukemia treatment: The CHOICE study

The COVID-19 pandemic may have influenced patients' therapeutic goals/preferences and concerns about CLL management, according to an observational study conducted across 16 Italian hematology centers. A total of 401 patients receiving either active treatment (n = 200) or watch and wait (n = 201) were assessed for quality of life and rated their concerns and care criteria in order of importance. Interestingly, progression-free survival was not among the most important concern to patients in either patient group; in fact, concern for infection was of the highest importance to patients with CLL regardless of whether they continued on observation vs. active treatment. The patients in the watch and wait group rated possible occurrence of infections highest (relative importance [RI] = 36.2%), followed by "treatment and relevant duration" (RI= 28.0%). Patients who had received therapy rated "treatment and relevant duration" highest (RI = 33.3%), followed by "possible occurrence of infections" (RI = 28.8%). Health-related quality-of-life scores were similar across both groups.