Skip to main content

Thank you for visiting nature.com. You are using a browser version with limited support for CSS. To obtain the best experience, we recommend you use a more up to date browser (or turn off compatibility mode in Internet Explorer). In the meantime, to ensure continued support, we are displaying the site without styles and JavaScript.

  • Review
  • Published:

Current CML therapy: progress and dilemma

Leukemia volume 17, pages 1010–1012 (2003)Cite this article

Abstract

Rarely has progress in treatment of leukemia been as dramatic and convincing as with the BCR-ABL tyrosine kinase inhibitor imatinib.1 Imatinib induces remissions of CML as fast as hydroxyurea, achieves rates of cytogenetic remissions that by far exceed those induced by interferon α and has a toxicity profile as favourable as that of hydroxyurea and much superior to that of interferon α.2 In addition, the causal approach of this new drug, which may well serve as a model for new treatment modalities in other neoplasias is reassuring.

This is a preview of subscription content, access via your institution

Access options

Buy this article

  • Purchase on Springer Link
  • Instant access to full article PDF
Buy now

Prices may be subject to local taxes which are calculated during checkout

Figure 1

Similar content being viewed by others

References

  1. Druker BJ, Talpaz M, Resta DJ, Peng B, Buchdunger E, Ford JM et al. Efficacy and safety of a specific inhibitor of the BCR-ABL tyrosine kinase in chronic myeloid leukemia. N Engl J Med 2001; 344: 1031–1037.

    Article  CAS  Google Scholar 

  2. O'Brien S, Guilhot F, Larson R, Gathmann I, Baccarani M, Cervantes F et al. The IRIS study: International randomized study of interferon and low-dose ara-C versus STI571 (imatinib) in patients with newly-diagnosed chronic phase chronic myeloid leukemia. N Engl J Med 2003; 348: 994–1004.

    Article  CAS  Google Scholar 

  3. Hasford J, Pfirrmann M, Hehlmann R, Allan NC, Baccarani M, Kluin-Nelemans J et al. A new prognostic score for the survival of patients with chronic myeloid leukemia treated with interferon alfa. J Natl Cancer Inst 1998; 90: 850–858.

    Article  CAS  Google Scholar 

  4. Silver RT, Woolf SH, Hehlmann R, Appelbaum FA, Anderson J, Bennett C et al. Review: an evidence-based analysis of the effect of busulfan, hydroxyurea, interferon, and allogeneic bone marrow transplantation in treating the chronic phase of chronic myeloid leukemia: developed for the American Society of Hematology. Blood 1999; 94: 1517–1536.

    CAS  Google Scholar 

  5. Hansen JA, Gooley TA, Martin PJ, Appelbaum F, Chauncey TR, Clift RA et al. Bone marrow transplants from unrelated donors for patients with chronic myeloid leukemia. N Engl J Med 1998; 338: 962–968.

    Article  CAS  Google Scholar 

  6. Gratwohl A, Hermans J, Goldman JM, Frassoni F, Devergie A, Carreras E et al. for the Chronic Leukemia Working Party of the European Group for Blood and Marrow Transplantation (EBMT). Risk assessment for patients with chronic myeloid leukemia before allogeneic blood or marrow transplantation. Lancet 1998; 352: 1087–1092.

    Article  CAS  Google Scholar 

  7. van Rhee F, Szydlo RM, Hermans J, Devergie A, Frassoni F, Arcese W et al. Long-term results after allogeneic bone marrow transplantation for chronic myelogenous leukemia in chronic phase: a report from the Chronic Leukemia Working Party of the European Group for Blood and Marrow Transplantation European results of matched unrelated donor bone marrow transplantation for chronic myeloid leukemia. Impact of HLA class II matching. Chronic Leukemia Working Party of the European Group for Blood and Marrow Transplantation. Bone Marrow Transplant 1997; 20: 11–19.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  8. Cross NCP, Feng L, Chase A, Bungey J, Hughes TP, Goldman JM . Competitive polymerase chain reaction to estimate the number of BCR-ABL transcripts in chronic myeloid leukemia patients after bone marrow transplantation. Blood 1993; 82: 1929–1936.

    CAS  Google Scholar 

  9. Hochhaus A, Kreil S, Corbin AS, La Rosee P, Müller MC,, Lahaye T et al. Molecular and chromosomal mechanisms of resistance to imatinib (STI571) therapy. Leukemia 2002; 16: 2190–2196.

    Article  CAS  Google Scholar 

  10. Hehlmann R . Trial of IFN or STI571 before proceeding to allografting for CML? Leukemia 2000; 14: 1560–1562.

    Article  CAS  Google Scholar 

  11. Hochhaus A, Reiter A, Saussele S, Reichert A, Emig M, Kaeda J et al. Molecular heterogeneity in complete cytogenetic responders after interferon alpha therapy for chronic myelogenous leukemia: low levels of minimal residual disease are associated with continuing remission. Blood 2000; 95: 62–66.

    CAS  Google Scholar 

  12. Bonifazi F, De Vivo A, Rosti G, Guilhot F, Guilhot J, Trabacchi E et al. Chronic myeloid leukemia and interferon-alpha: a study of complete cytogenetic responders. Blood 2001; 98: 3074–3081.

    Article  CAS  Google Scholar 

  13. Kantarjian H, Sawyers C, Hochhaus A, Guilhot F, Schiffer C, Gambacorti-Passerini C et al. Hematologic and cytogenetic responses to imatinib mesylate in chronic myelogenous leukemia. N Engl J Med 2002; 346: 645–652.

    Article  CAS  Google Scholar 

  14. Burchert A, Wolfl S, Schmidt M, Brendel C, Denecke B, Cai D et al. Interferon-alpha, but not the ABL-kinase inhibitor imatinib (STI571), induces expression of myeloblastin and a specific T-cell response in chronic myeloid leukemia. Blood 2003; 101: 259–264.

    Article  CAS  Google Scholar 

  15. Hehlmann R, Berger U, Pfirrmann M, Hochhaus A, Metzgerdth G, Maywald O et al. Randomized comparison of interferon α and hydroxyurea with hydroxyurea monotherapy in chronic myeloid leukemia (CML-Study II): prolongation of survival by the combination of interferon α and hydoxyurea. Leukemia 2003 (in press).

  16. Talpaz M, Silver RT, Druker BJ, Goldman JM, Gambacorti-Passerini C, Guilhot F et al. Imatinib induces durable hematologic and cytogenetic responses in patients with accelerated phase chronic myeloid leukemia: results of a phase 2 study. Blood 2002; 99: 1928–1937.

    Article  CAS  Google Scholar 

  17. Lipton JH, Khoroshko ND, Golenkov AK, Abdulkadyrov KM, Nair MK, Raghunadharao D et al. A randomized multicenter comparative study of peginterferon alfa-2a (40KD) vs interferon-alfa-2a in patients with treatment-naive chronic-phase chronic myelogenous leukemia. Blood. 2002; 100: 782a.

    Google Scholar 

  18. Hoover RR, Mahon FX, Melo JV, Daley GQ . Overcoming STI571 resistance with the farnesyl transferase inhibitor SCH66336. Blood 2002; 100: 1068–1071.

    Article  CAS  Google Scholar 

  19. La Rosee P, O'Dwyer ME, Druker BJ . Insights from pre-clinical studies for new combination treatment regimens with the Bcr-Abl kinase inhibitor imatinib mesylate (Gleevec/Glivec) in chronic myelogenous leukemia: a translational perspective. Leukemia 2002; 16: 1213–1219.

    Article  CAS  Google Scholar 

  20. Hehlmann R, Berger U, Engelich G . Imatinib-Kombinationstherapien – die neue CML – Studie IV. Dtsch Med Wochenschr 2002; 127: 2224–2226.

    Google Scholar 

Download references

Author information

Authors and Affiliations

  1. III. Medizinische Klinik, Universitätsklinikum Mannheim der Universität Heidelberg, Wiesbadener, Str. 7-11, Mannheim, Germany

    R Hehlmann

Authors
  1. R Hehlmann
    View author publications

    You can also search for this author in PubMed Google Scholar

Rights and permissions

Reprints and permissions

About this article

Cite this article

Hehlmann, R. Current CML therapy: progress and dilemma. Leukemia 17, 1010–1012 (2003). https://doi.org/10.1038/sj.leu.2402951

Download citation

  • Received:

  • Accepted:

  • Published:

  • Issue Date:

  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1038/sj.leu.2402951

Keywords

This article is cited by

Search

Advanced search

Quick links