Treatment of chronic myeloid leukemia in pregnant women

Abstract

Introducing BCR-ABL1 tyrosine kinase inhibitors (TKI) dramatically improved the survival of patients with chronic myeloid leukemia (CML). Tolerance of treatment is very good as well as patients have high quality of life and expectations, including fertility and procreation. Animal data suggest that TKI are teratogenic for fetus. The data relating to children born to women exposed to imatinib (IM) during pregnancy indicate an occurrence of rare congenital malformation, such that IM cannot be recommended during pregnancy, particularly within a period of organogenesis. Alternative strategies of CML treatment, including leukapheresis and interferon alfa, are thus recommended. In contrast children born to men taking IM seem healthy and current advice is not to interrupt treatment.
Hematologia 2011; 2, 1: 57–62