Article ID | Journal | Published Year | Pages | File Type |
---|---|---|---|---|
2103885 | Biology of Blood and Marrow Transplantation | 2010 | 6 Pages |
Although the drug imatinib has been accepted as the treatment of choice for chronic myelogenous leukemia (CML) in chronic phase (CP) throughout the Western world, allogeneic stem cell transplantation (allo-SCT) continues to remain a widely practiced first-line treatment in countries with limited health care budgets. The rationale is not scientific, but largely economically based. We analyzed a cohort of 46 CML patients who participated in a graft-versus-host disease (GVHD) prophylaxis clinical trial and underwent related HLA-matched allogeneic peripheral blood stem cell transplantation. The median time of follow-up in surviving patients was 43 months (range: 4-89 months). Risk stratification of the population was done by European Blood and Marrow Transplant (EBMT) criteria. The estimated probabilities of overall survival (OS) and leukemia-free survival (LFS) at 3 years in low EBMT risk score (0-2) patients were both 91%, respectively. We conclude that in countries with restricted access to imatinib, allo-SCT should be considered early on as front-line therapy. Continued research support for bone marrow transplantation will be needed to make a global impact on this disease.