Population pharmacokinetics of imatinib mesylate in patients with chronic‐phase chronic myeloid leukaemia: results of a phase III study

Article date: July 2005

By: H. Schmidli, B. Peng, G‐J. Riviere, R. Capdeville, M. Hensley, I. Gathmann, A. E. Bolton, A. Racine‐Poon, in Volume 60, Issue 1, pages 35-44

Aims

This study was designed to investigate the biochemical and physiological covariates or comedications that affect the pharmacokinetics of imatinib mesylate in patients with chronic‐phase chronic myeloid leukaemia (CP CML).

Methods

Pharmacokinetic data were analyzed in 371 patients receiving 400 mg imatinib once daily during a phase III trial of imatinib vs interferon‐alfa plus cytarabine for the treatment of newly diagnosed CP CML. Covariates included age, weight, sex, ethnicity, haemoglobin (Hb) concentration, white blood cell (WBC) count, liver function, and creatinine concentration. Blood samples for imatinib analysis were taken on treatment days 1 and 29. Nonlinear mixed effects modelling was used for the population pharmacokinetic analysis.

Results

Population mean estimates (95% confidence interval) at day 1 for apparent clearance (CL) and apparent volume of distribution (V) of imatinib were 14 (13‐15) l h−1 and 252  (237‐267)  l,  respectively.  Modelling  suggested  that  CL  decreased  by  4  (3‐5) l h−1 from day 1 to day 29, whereas V remained unchanged. Interindividual variability in CL and V was 32% and 31%, respectively. Weight, Hb, and WBC count demonstrated small effects on CL and V. Doubling body weight or Hb or halving the WBC count was associated with a 12%, 86% and 8% increase in CL, respectively, and a 32%, 60% and 5% increase in V, respectively. Comedications showed no clear effects on imatinib CL.

Conclusions

Population covariates and coadministered drugs minimally affected imatinib pharmacokinetics in newly diagnosed CP CML patients.

DOI: 10.1111/j.1365-2125.2005.02372.x

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