2015 Volume 56 Issue 3 Pages 298-303
The poor survival of Ph+ALL patients treated with chemotherapy alone has been substantially improved through the use of allogeneic hematopoietic stem cell transplantation in patients experiencing their first complete remission and, more recently, by combining tyrosine kinase inhibitors with induction and post-remission chemotherapy. However, disease relapse after transplantation remains a serious issue for Ph+ALL patients. This review summarizes the increasing knowledge gained by using TKIs for Ph+ALL treatment and considers how patients should be categorized according to their levels of MRD so as to be provided the most suitable therapy, in order to prevent Ph+ALL recurrence and improve survival.
