What Were the Key Hematologic Oncology Takeaways from SOHO 2026?

At the 2026 Society of Hematologic Oncology (SOHO) Annual Meeting, CancerNetwork^® sat down with a variety of experts to discuss the latest data and emerging trends surrounding the management of different hematologic malignancies. Speakers and presentations covered everything from second primary malignancy risks to novel clinical trial findings across lymphoma, myelodysplastic syndrome (MDS), leukemia, and other patient patients.

First, Jasmine M, Zain, MD, an attending physician in the Lymphoma Service at Memorial Sloan Kettering Cancer Center, highlighted key takeaways from her presentation exploring the risk of secondary lymphoma malignancies following CAR T-cell therapy.¹ In addition to discussing the incidence, mechanisms, and possible risk factors of these second malignancies, she detailed how to clinically differentiate between malignancies directly driven by retroviral or lentiviral insertional mutagenesis compared with those arising from cumulative genotoxic stress.

Additionally, David Sallman, MD, an associate member in the Department of Malignant Hematology at Moffitt Cancer Center in Tampa, Florida, reviewed findings from the phase 2a HT-6184-MDS-001 trial (NCT07052006).² In this study, Sallman and colleagues assessed ofirnoflast (HT-6184), a first-in-class oral allosteric NEK7 inhibitor designed to block NLRP3 inflammasome activation, in patients with lower-risk MDS who were refractory to, intolerant of, or ineligible for erythropoiesis-stimulating agents. Sallman discussed the platelet and neutrophil responses observed with ofirnoflast and how its intermittent, oral dosing schedule may protect long-term quality of life, especially among older patients with comorbidities.

Finally, Julie M. Vose, MD, MBA, the George and Peggy Payne Distinguished Chair of Oncology, professor in the Division of Hematology, and director of the Lymphoma Research Group at the University of Nebraska Medical Center, and co–editor in chief of ONCOLOGY^®, spoke about general developments relating to the ever-evolving chronic lymphocytic leukemia (CLL) field. She detailed how minimal residual disease (MRD) testing may serve as an informative clinical decision-making tool, outlined strategies for community practices to keep up to date with the latest happenings in the space, and identified time-limited therapies as a key theme from the meeting.

References

1. Zain JM. Understanding the risk of second malignancies after CAR T therapies. Presented at: Society of Hematologic Oncology Annual Meeting; September 9-12, 2026; Houston, TX.
2. Sallman D, Bafna V, Nath UK, et al. Ofirnoflast (HT-6184), a first-in-class allosteric NEK7 inhibitor, achieves durable transfusion independence (TI) and hematological improvement-erythroid (HI-E) in ESA-refractory lower-risk myelodysplastic syndrome (LR-MDS): phase 2 final results. Presented at: 2026 SOHO Annual Meeting; September 9-12, 2026; Houston, TX.