imatinib, anticancer drug used primarily in the treatment of chronic myelogenous leukemia (CML). Imatinib was approved by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration in 2001 under the trade name Gleevec for the treatment of CML. The following year it was approved for the treatment of advanced gastrointestinal stromal tumours (GISTs), which are rare cancers affecting interstitial cells that regulate the autonomic nervous function of the gastrointestinal tract. Clinical trials investigating the efficacy of imatinib against other types of cancers are ongoing.
Imatinib is designed to target abnormal proteins that promote the growth and survival of cancer cells and that are unique to these cells. This differs from traditional anticancer agents, which act on general mechanisms controlling cell replication or programmed cell death (apoptosis) and which do not differentiate between cancer cells and normal cells. Imatinib is highly effective—the five-year survival rate for previously untreated CML patients is nearly 90 percent. Imatinib’s success clinically has come to represent an important milestone in the advancement of cancer treatment, since it demonstrated that targeted therapies could be more effective and safer than traditional nonselective anticancer agents. Imatinib served as a model for the subsequent development of other selective anticancer drugs, which as a group are known as targeted therapies.
Imatinib inhibits an enzyme called bcr-abl tyrosine kinase, which occurs only in CML cells carrying a genetic defect known as the Philadelphia chromosome. The abnormal kinase stimulates the continuous proliferation of bone marrow stem cells that give rise to myelogenous cells (granulocytes and macrophages). This causes an increase in the number of myelogenous cells in the body, leading to symptoms such as fatigue and enlargement of the spleen. However, imatinib can reverse these effects by blocking the proliferation of cells that possess the bcr-abl tyrosine kinase. Imatinib works similarly in patients affected by GIST, which arises from the abnormal activity of a tyrosine kinase called c-kit.
Imatinib is administered orally and is typically used in patients who are newly diagnosed with CML and in patients who are experiencing CML blast crisis. Blast crisis occurs when mature myelogenous cells acquire the ability to replicate uncontrollably, causing a dramatic increase in the number of immature, or blast, cells circulating in the body. Imatinib is given only to GIST patients who have tumours that cannot be removed surgically or that have metastasized (spread to other parts of the body). Mild to moderate side effects of the drug include gastrointestinal upset, edema (fluid retention), bone pain, and fatigue. In some patients edema is severe and can lead to swelling in the lower legs and to difficulty breathing. Elderly patients appear to be at increased risk of certain side effects, including edema, anemia, and heart failure. Imatinib interferes with the liver’s metabolism of a variety of other agents, including warfarin and phenytoin. These interactions can lead to severe toxicity or to decreased drug activity.