Multicenter phase 1-2 study of Ponatinib-FLAG-IDA for blast phase CML

Outcomes for patients with blast-phase chronic myeloid leukemia are poor. Long-term survival depends on reaching a second chronic phase, followed by allogeneic hematopoietic stem-cell transplantation (alloHSCT). The multicenter phase 1-2 study MATCHPOINT in the UK found that the combination of the TKI ponatinib with fludarabine, cytarabine, granulocyte colony-stimulating factor, and idarubincine (FLAG-IDA) can induce second chronic phase in patients with blast-phase CML, representing an active salvage therapy to bridge to alloHSCT. Twelve of seventeen patients proceeded to alloHSCT. The median overall survival of the whole cohort was 12 months.