Improved chronic myeloid leukaemia treatments increase survival rates

Better treatments for chronic myeloid leukaemia have helped to substantially increase survival rates for the disease.

This is according to a new report from the National Cancer Intelligence Network, which found the boost in survivors is largely due to a family of drugs entitled Tyrosine Kinase Inhibitors (TKIs), which have turned into the standard treatment for the disease.

The Northern and Yorkshire Cancer Registry and Information Service (NYCRIS), on behalf of the NCIN Haematology Site Specific Clinical Reference Group (SSCRG),examined the rates of people in England who were affected by myeloid leukaemia between 1995 and 2008.

For patients diagnosed with CML, researchers discovered the chance of surviving the disease for at least five years after diagnosis jumped from 41 per cent to 57 per cent in men, while a rise from 38 per cent to 59 per cent was noted in women between the late 1990s and early 2000s.

CML is a quite rare condition, impacting roughly 700 people in the UK on an annual basis.

Dr Robin Ireland, chair of the SSCRG at the NCIN, described the improved survival rates as "really exciting", adding that drugs can make an "enormous difference" in the battle against cancer.

"Basic research has given us a greater biological understanding of cancer tumours, which has led to the development of successful targeted cancer drugs that are now the first line treatment for CML. TKIs target cancer cells by blocking the molecules they make, which stops them from multiplying.

"These drugs have completely changed the outlook for patients with this disease and it’s the first example of our improved understanding of cell molecular biology leading to the design of a specific inhibitor of the disease," Mr Ireland went on to say.

Recently, scientists found two types of early cells in mammary glands, which reveal clues relating to the origins of a number of breast cancers.

Specialists Cancer Research UK's Cambridge Research Institute found at least two different types of the progenitor cells, with the findings published in Breast Cancer Research.

Posted by Fiona Griffiths