Interferon-α-2b and oral cytarabine ocfosfate for newly diagnosed chronic myeloid leukaemia

Abstract

Background: Treatment with interferon and subcutaneous cytarabine produces superior cytogenetic responses in chronic myeloid leukaemia (CML) than treatment with interferon alone, but at the expense of greater toxicity. Cytarabine ocfosfate (YNK01) is an oral precursor of cytarabine that may overcome some of the inconvenience and toxicities associated with subcutaneous cytarabine administration. Patients and methods: We studied the efficacy and tolerability of combination therapy with interferon-α-2b and YNK01 in patients with newly diagnosed, untreated CML. Forty patients were treated with interferon-α-2b (5MU/m2/day) plus monthly courses of YNK01 (600mg/day for 10 days) for 1 year. Results:..