Treatment of Chronic Myeloid Leukaemia (CML)
The main treatment of CML is biological therapy and chemotherapy. Radiotherapy is used rarely to treat an uncomfortably swollen spleen. Treatment is likely to be low dose and given over a week or so. The treatment improves symptoms with minimal side effects.
Treatments for chronic and accelerated phase CML are similar and are likely to be one of the following:
- Biological therapy with Imatinib, Dasatinib or Interferon
- Chemotherapy with hydroxycarbamide – this is a tablet form of chemotherapy – side effects are usually mild, the main one is feeling tired. Hair loss and overwhelming infection are extremely rare. High dose chemotherapy with bone marrow or stem cell transplant
If disease recurs another one of this list of treatments is likely to be used to treat it.
Blast phase
There are two likely treatments:
- Biological therapy with Imatinib – see general notes for side effects.
- High dose chemotherapy with bone marrow or stem cell transplant.
Bone marrow or stem cell transplant can be used after Imatinib if this treatment has been successful at putting leukaemia into remission in the blast phase. Imatinib can put 30 to 50% of people with blast phase CML into remission but it does not last. The only way of achieving a long term cure is bone marrow or stem cell transplant.
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Amended February 2009
