Switching to Nilotinib May Reduce Imatinib-related Adverse Events in CML

Switching to nilotinib may be able to mitigate imatinib-related chronic, low-grade non-hematologic adverse events in patients with chronic myeloid leukemia in chronic phase (CML-CP), according to a study published in Clinical Lymphoma, Myeloma & Leukemia.

Additionally, the treatment may offer acceptable safety and achievement of molecular response.

Researchers led by Jorge Cortes, MD, of The University of Texas MD Anderson Cancer Center evaluated results from the phase 2 Exploring Nilotinib to Reduce Imatinib Related Chronic Adverse Events (ENRICH) study which included 52 patients who made the switch.

After 3 months, 84.6% of patients were found to have an overall improvement in imatinib-related adverse events. Of 210 imatinib-related adverse events that were identified at baseline, 62.9% were found to have resolved within 3 months of switching to nilotinib.

In addition, most evaluable patients were found to have an overall improvement in quality of life after switching to nilotinib. At screening, 65.4% of evaluable patients were found to have a major molecular response, with a rate of 76.1% at 3 months and 87.8% at 12 months.

Reference

1. Cortes JE, Lipton JH, Miller CB, et al. Evaluating the impact of a switch to nilotinib on imatinib-related chronic low-grade adverse events in patients with CML-CP: the ENRICH study. Clinical Lymphoma, Myeloma & Leukemia. [published online ahead of print February 15, 2016]. DOI: http://dx.doi.org/10.1016/j.clml.2016.02.002.