Nilotinib: A Review of its Use in Chronic Myelogenous Leukemia

Chronic myeloid leukemia (CML) is characterized by the reciprocal chromosomal translocation, t(9; 22), forming the -BCR-ABL oncogene known as the Philadelphia chromosome. The development of imatinib, a small-molecule kinase inhibitor targeted against BCR-ABL, has revolutionized the management of CML and significantly improved the prognosis and outcome and until very recently was the standard of care in patients presenting with newly diagnosed CML. Nilotinib (Tasigna r) is an orally administered kinase inhibitor made by the Novartis Pharmaceuticals Corporation that was rationally designed to bind to the ABL kinase domain of BCR-ABL resulting in enhanced BCR-ABL inhibition. It is well tolerated and has a favourable safety profile. Nilotinib has been shown to be effective in patients who have failed prior therapy with imatinib. Recently a large randomized control trial comparing imatinib and nilotinib has demonstrated that niloitinb is superior to imatinib in the frontline treatment of CML. This review summarizes the preclinical and clinical data supporting the use of nilotinib in the frontline and secondline treatment of CML.