A comparison of donor lymphocyte infusions or imatinib mesylate for patients with chronic myelogenous leukemia who have relapsed after allogeneic stem cell transplantation

Imatinib mesylate is highly effective in relapsed chronic myelogenous leukemia (CML) after allogeneic hematopoetic stem cell transplantation (HSCT). However, it is unknown whether imatinib produces durable molecular remissions. The outcome of CML patients transplanted at our center who had received only imatinib for relapse after HSCT was compared with that of patients treated with donor lymphocyte infusions (DLI). Imatinib therapy resulted in a higher incidence of relapse and inferior leukemia-free survival (p=0.006 and p=0.016, respectively). These data suggest that imatinib alone probably does not cure relapse after HSCT.