Evaluation of the use, effectiveness and safety of tyrosine kinase inhibitors in chronic myelogenous leukaemia in a general university hospital

ObjectivesTo evaluate the use, effectiveness and safety of tyrosine kinase inhibitors (TKIs) for chronic myelogenous leukaemia (CML) in clinical practice.MethodsA retrospective longitudinal study of patients with CML who received TKIs for at least 6 months was performed. Endpoints to evaluate effectiveness were haematological, cytogenetic and molecular responses. Safety was assessed according to the occurrence of adverse events.ResultsSixty-two patients were included. All received imatinib as the initial TKI; 8% switched to nilotinib due to lack of major molecular response (MMR) to imatinib and 3% switched to dasatinib because of progression to blast crisis or lack of MMR. At the end of the study all patients had achieved at least a complete cytogenetic response. With regard to safety, in 11 patients the dose of imatinib was decreased and four patients switched to a second-generation TKI due to imatinib toxicity.ConclusionsConsidering the good responses of most patients and its better known safety profile, imatinib should remain a good option for first-line treatment of CML.