Adherence to treatment with second-line therapies,dasatinib and nilotinib,in patients with chronic myeloid leukemia

Abstract

Background and objective:

Previous studies have shown that long-term outcomes are more favorable for patients newly diagnosed with chronic myeloid leukemia (CML) if a complete cytogenetic response is achieved within ≤12?months of diagnosis. Because continuous and adequate dosing is important to achieve this outcome, it is important to understand treatment adherence as part of managing long-term CML therapy. While studies regarding imatinib suggest that adherence varies widely, data addressing adherence to newer breakpoint cluster region–Abelson (BCR-ABL) inhibitors (dasatinib and nilotinib) are sparse. This study evaluates real-world adherence in patients diagnosed with CML receiving dasatinib or nilotinib as second-line therapy.