Medscape CML Data On Drugs In The Pipeline

[Guest guest]

Webcam - Dr. Cortes (Asked the question if the TKI's were a cure for leukemia -

see what he has to say about the issue facing us on some levels.)

Ponatinib for Chronic Myelogenous Leukemia

Despite the success of imatinib and its cousins dasatinib and nilotinib in

treating CML, a proportion of patients with CML will experience treatment

failure or develop resistance. Currently there are no effective drugs for

resistance due to the T315I mutation, but ponatinib-a new tyrosine kinase

inhibitor-appears to inhibit the entire spectrum of mutations responsible for

resistance to tyrosine kinase inhibitors.

A dose-escalation, phase I study of 74 patients with refractory hematologic

malignancies (60 patients with CML), showed exciting results in a cohort of

patients with chronic-phase CML.2 (Among the 60 patients with CML, 44 were in

chronic phase, 7 were in accelerated phase, and 9 were in blast phase.)

Among 38 evaluable patients with chronic-phase CML, 95% had a complete

hematologic response, 66% a major cytogenetic response, and 53% a complete

cytogenetic response. In nine evaluable patients from this group with

chronic-phase CML and T315I mutations, 100% had a complete hematologic response,

100% had a major cytogenetic response, and 89% had a complete cytogenetic

response.

http://tinyurl.com/4l3xlv8

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Containing the High Cost of Cancer Care

Four experts examine the issue and offer solutions. By Jo Cavallo February 15,

2011, Volume 2, Issue 3

Page last updated at Monday, February 07, 2011, 4:31 PM

" While the overall expenditure on cancer care in general has remained relatively

steady over the past 2 decades-encompassing 4.8% of the total $513 billion spent

on medical care in 1987, vs 4.9% of the average $979 billion spent annually from

2001 to 2005-the cost of oncology drugs has soared past all other classes of

pharmaceutical agents (Cancer 116:3477-3484, 2010). According to the marketing

firm IMS Health, sales of oncology drugs have skyrocketed from $5 billion in

1998 to $19.2 billion in 2008. Most of that increase is attributable to the

newer anticancer agents on the market. According to Journal of the National

Cancer Institute (Fojo T, et al: J Natl Cancer Inst 101: 1044-1048), 90% of

cancer-fighting drugs or biologics approved by the FDA over the past 4 years

cost more than $20,000 for a 12-week course of therapy, with many offering a

survival benefit of only 2 months or less.

" The result of the rising cost of cancer treatment is threatening not just the

financial solvency of patients-a poll by the American Cancer Society found that

one in five families use up all of their savings paying for cancer treatment-but

that of the country as well. With health-care spending projected to balloon to

$4 trillion by 2015..... "

http://tinyurl.com/4juqgoy

FYI,

Lottie Duthu