Outcomes for patients with Philadelphia chromosome-positive acute lymphoblastic leukemia (Ph+ ALL) in the pre-imatinib era were poor, particularly if patients did not receive an allogeneic hematopoietic stem cell transplant. This led to the recommendation that all patients with Ph+ ALL, if they were transplant candidates, should be transplanted. With the introduction of imatinib and subsequently other tyrosine kinase inhibitors, patient outcomes improved dramatically, raising the question of whether transplant in first complete molecular remission for these patients is really necessary. This review looks at evidence from clinical studies around the world in an attempt to answer this question. Copyright © 2016 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.
Mark R Litzow. Should anyone with Philadelphia chromosome-positive ALL who is negative for minimal residual disease receive a hematopoietic stem cell transplant in first remission? Best practice & research. Clinical haematology. 2016 Dec;29(4):345-350
PMID: 27890258
View Full Text