Potential mechanisms of disease progression and management of advanced-phase chronic myeloid leukemia

Abstract

Despite vast improvements in the treatment of Philadelphia chromosome-positive chronic myeloid leukemia (CML) in chronic phase (CP), advanced stages of CML, accelerated phase or blast crisis, remain notoriously difficult to treat. Treatments that are highly effective against CML-CP produce disappointing results against advanced disease. Therefore, a primary goal of therapy should be to maintain patients in CP for as long as possible, by (1) striving for deep, early molecular response to treatment; (2) using tyrosine kinase inhibitors that lower risk of disease progression; and (3) more closely observing patients who demonstrate cytogenetic risk factors at diagnosis or during treatment.

Keywords::

• Myeloid leukemias and dysplasias
• tyrosine kinase inhibitor
• drug resistance

Acknowledgements

The authors thank Anna Lau, PhD, and Patricia Segarini, PhD, of Percolation Communications LLC for their medical editorial assistance.

Potential conflict of interest: Disclosure forms provided by the authors are available with the full text of this article at www.informahealthcare.com/lal.

Financial support for medical editorial assistance was provided by Novartis Pharmaceuticals Corporation.