View Single Post
  #2  
Old Fri Aug 12, 2011, 06:22 PM
DanL DanL is offline
Member
 
Join Date: Dec 2010
Location: Denver, CO
Posts: 590
Linda,

Are Vidaza and Dacogen off the table? I didn't see that your husband had been treated with any hypomethylating agents as yet. They both have pretty well-tested results for higher risk mds patients and are considered the treatments of choice for most patients. Vidaza in particular is recommended under the NCCN guidelines for MDS patients with low platelet counts.

Recent studies on Estybon seem to indicate that it can prolong life for people who have already failed hypomethylating agents, and does not have significant side effects such as bone marrow suppression. Early observed response rates are as high as 50% (includes all response from complete response down to hematological improvement), but the complete response and marrow complete response is up to 36%, which seems pretty good. It is currently entering phase II/III testing where they are randomizing patients to see if it is better than best supportive care. See this article in the MDS Beacon:

http://www.mdsbeacon.com/news/2011/0...ogen-eha-2011/

Sapacitabine is in phase II trials I believe. It appears that the best response rate is about 35%, which includes complete response, marrow complete response, partial response, and hematological improvement. This compares to rates over 50% for Vidaza and Dacogen. See the report in the link below:

http://www.news-medical.net/news/201...ng.aspx?page=2

I believe that MD Anderson has been using oral Vidaza in trial with pretty good results as well. It sounds like there may be several options available at this time.

I do hope this helps a little. Good luck to you and your husband!
__________________
MDS RCMD w/grade 2-3 fibrosis. Allo-MUD Feb 26, 2014. Relapsed August 2014. Free and clear of MDS since November 2014 after treatment with Vidaza and Rituxan. Experiencing autoimmune attack on CNS thought to be GVHD, some gut, skin and ocular cGVHD. Neuropathy over 80% of body.

Last edited by DanL : Fri Aug 12, 2011 at 06:22 PM. Reason: incomplete original entry
Reply With Quote