Cancer Health Center

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A response defined as 50% reduction of splenomegaly or development of transfusion independence was attained by one-third of 34 symptomatic patients using tipifarnib.[24][Level of evidence: 3iiiDiv] A more aggressive approach involves allogeneic peripheral stem cell or bone marrow transplantation when a suitable sibling donor is available.[25,26,27] Detection of the JAK2 mutation after transplantation is feasible, but there are no data to confirm that a change in therapy based on persistence of this marker would have an effect on outcome.[28] A retrospective review of 150 patients who underwent surgery documented 8% thromboembolism and 7% major hemorrhage with prior cytoreduction and postoperative subcutaneous heparin in one-half of the patients.[29]

Treatment options:

1. Clinical trials involving JAK2 inhibitors.(COMFORT-I trial [NCT00952289])
2. Interferon-alpha.[20,21]
3. Splenectomy.[18,30]
4. Splenic radiation therapy.[4]
5. Hydroxyurea.[3,4]
6. Allogeneic peripheral stem cell or bone marrow transplantation.[26,27,31,32]
7. Thalidomide.[15,22,23,25]
8. Lenalidomide.[17,33]

Current Clinical Trials

Check for U.S. clinical trials from NCI's list of cancer clinical trials that are now accepting patients with primary myelofibrosis. The list of clinical trials can be further narrowed by location, drug, intervention, and other criteria.

General information about clinical trials is also available from the NCI Web site.

References:

1. Hennessy BT, Thomas DA, Giles FJ, et al.: New approaches in the treatment of myelofibrosis. Cancer 103 (1): 32-43, 2005.
2. Campbell PJ, Green AR: The myeloproliferative disorders. N Engl J Med 355 (23): 2452-66, 2006.
3. Barosi G: Myelofibrosis with myeloid metaplasia: diagnostic definition and prognostic classification for clinical studies and treatment guidelines. J Clin Oncol 17 (9): 2954-70, 1999.
4. Tefferi A: Myelofibrosis with myeloid metaplasia. N Engl J Med 342 (17): 1255-65, 2000.
5. Tefferi A, Thiele J, Vardiman JW: The 2008 World Health Organization classification system for myeloproliferative neoplasms: order out of chaos. Cancer 115 (17): 3842-7, 2009.
6. Wilkins BS, Erber WN, Bareford D, et al.: Bone marrow pathology in essential thrombocythemia: interobserver reliability and utility for identifying disease subtypes. Blood 111 (1): 60-70, 2008.
7. Chim CS, Kwong YL, Lie AK, et al.: Long-term outcome of 231 patients with essential thrombocythemia: prognostic factors for thrombosis, bleeding, myelofibrosis, and leukemia. Arch Intern Med 165 (22): 2651-8, 2005 Dec 12-26.
8. Hussein K, Pardanani AD, Van Dyke DL, et al.: International Prognostic Scoring System-independent cytogenetic risk categorization in primary myelofibrosis. Blood 115 (3): 496-9, 2010.
9. Cervantes F, Barosi G, Demory JL, et al.: Myelofibrosis with myeloid metaplasia in young individuals: disease characteristics, prognostic factors and identification of risk groups. Br J Haematol 102 (3): 684-90, 1998.
10. Strasser-Weippl K, Steurer M, Kees M, et al.: Age and hemoglobin level emerge as most important clinical prognostic parameters in patients with osteomyelofibrosis: introduction of a simplified prognostic score. Leuk Lymphoma 47 (3): 441-50, 2006.
11. Tefferi A: Survivorship and prognosis in myelofibrosis with myeloid metaplasia. Leuk Lymphoma 47 (3): 379-80, 2006.
12. Tam CS, Kantarjian H, Cortes J, et al.: Dynamic model for predicting death within 12 months in patients with primary or post-polycythemia vera/essential thrombocythemia myelofibrosis. J Clin Oncol 27 (33): 5587-93, 2009.
13. Morel P, Duhamel A, Hivert B, et al.: Identification during the follow-up of time-dependent prognostic factors for the competing risks of death and blast phase in primary myelofibrosis: a study of 172 patients. Blood 115 (22): 4350-5, 2010.
14. Cervantes F, Dupriez B, Pereira A, et al.: New prognostic scoring system for primary myelofibrosis based on a study of the International Working Group for Myelofibrosis Research and Treatment. Blood 113 (13): 2895-901, 2009.
15. Giovanni B, Michelle E, Letizia C, et al.: Thalidomide in myelofibrosis with myeloid metaplasia: a pooled-analysis of individual patient data from five studies. Leuk Lymphoma 43 (12): 2301-7, 2002.
16. Marchetti M, Barosi G, Balestri F, et al.: Low-dose thalidomide ameliorates cytopenias and splenomegaly in myelofibrosis with myeloid metaplasia: a phase II trial. J Clin Oncol 22 (3): 424-31, 2004.
17. Tefferi A, Cortes J, Verstovsek S, et al.: Lenalidomide therapy in myelofibrosis with myeloid metaplasia. Blood 108 (4): 1158-64, 2006.
18. Barosi G, Ambrosetti A, Centra A, et al.: Splenectomy and risk of blast transformation in myelofibrosis with myeloid metaplasia. Italian Cooperative Study Group on Myeloid with Myeloid Metaplasia. Blood 91 (10): 3630-6, 1998.
19. Tefferi A, Mesa RA, Nagorney DM, et al.: Splenectomy in myelofibrosis with myeloid metaplasia: a single-institution experience with 223 patients. Blood 95 (7): 2226-33, 2000.
20. Sacchi S: The role of alpha-interferon in essential thrombocythaemia, polycythaemia vera and myelofibrosis with myeloid metaplasia (MMM): a concise update. Leuk Lymphoma 19 (1-2): 13-20, 1995.
21. Gilbert HS: Long term treatment of myeloproliferative disease with interferon-alpha-2b: feasibility and efficacy. Cancer 83 (6): 1205-13, 1998.
22. Strupp C, Germing U, Scherer A, et al.: Thalidomide for the treatment of idiopathic myelofibrosis. Eur J Haematol 72 (1): 52-7, 2004.
23. Mesa RA, Elliott MA, Schroeder G, et al.: Durable responses to thalidomide-based drug therapy for myelofibrosis with myeloid metaplasia. Mayo Clin Proc 79 (7): 883-9, 2004.
24. Mesa RA, Camoriano JK, Geyer SM, et al.: A phase II trial of tipifarnib in myelofibrosis: primary, post-polycythemia vera and post-essential thrombocythemia. Leukemia 21 (9): 1964-70, 2007.
25. Guardiola P, Anderson JE, Bandini G, et al.: Allogeneic stem cell transplantation for agnogenic myeloid metaplasia: a European Group for Blood and Marrow Transplantation, Soci�t� Fran�aise de Greffe de Moelle, Gruppo Italiano per il Trapianto del Midollo Osseo, and Fred Hutchinson Cancer Research Center Collaborative Study. Blood 93 (9): 2831-8, 1999.
26. Deeg HJ, Gooley TA, Flowers ME, et al.: Allogeneic hematopoietic stem cell transplantation for myelofibrosis. Blood 102 (12): 3912-8, 2003.
27. Daly A, Song K, Nevill T, et al.: Stem cell transplantation for myelofibrosis: a report from two Canadian centers. Bone Marrow Transplant 32 (1): 35-40, 2003.
28. Kr�ger N, Badbaran A, Holler E, et al.: Monitoring of the JAK2-V617F mutation by highly sensitive quantitative real-time PCR after allogeneic stem cell transplantation in patients with myelofibrosis. Blood 109 (3): 1316-21, 2007.
29. Ruggeri M, Rodeghiero F, Tosetto A, et al.: Postsurgery outcomes in patients with polycythemia vera and essential thrombocythemia: a retrospective survey. Blood 111 (2): 666-71, 2008.
30. Tefferi A, Silverstein MN, Li CY: 2-Chlorodeoxyadenosine treatment after splenectomy in patients who have myelofibrosis with myeloid metaplasia. Br J Haematol 99 (2): 352-7, 1997.
31. Deeg HJ, Appelbaum FR: Stem-cell transplantation for myelofibrosis. N Engl J Med 344 (10): 775-6, 2001.
32. Kr�ger N, Holler E, Kobbe G, et al.: Allogeneic stem cell transplantation after reduced-intensity conditioning in patients with myelofibrosis: a prospective, multicenter study of the Chronic Leukemia Working Party of the European Group for Blood and Marrow Transplantation. Blood 114 (26): 5264-70, 2009.
33. Quint�s-Cardama A, Kantarjian HM, Manshouri T, et al.: Lenalidomide plus prednisone results in durable clinical, histopathologic, and molecular responses in patients with myelofibrosis. J Clin Oncol 27 (28): 4760-6, 2009.