Dasatinib for the treatment of chronic myeloid leukemia: patient selection and special considerations

Earlier use of more potent tyrosine kinase inhibitors such as dasatinib improves response rates for patients with chronic myeloid leukemia (CML). The SRC-ABL Tyrosine Kinase Inhibition Activity Research Trials series displayed dasatinib efficacy in patients with all phases of CML who are resistant or intolerant to imatinib. More recently, dasatinib has been shown to induce rapid and high rates of response and has gained approval for newly diagnosed patients with CML in chronic phase. The future of CML therapy may incorporate more potent tyrosine kinase inhibitors such as dasatinib into initial treatment for newly diagnosed patients. The ability of dasatinib to induce rapid and high rates of response with a low progression to advanced forms of CML may translate into improvements in survival.