A Multi-disciplinary Approach to Managing Chronic Myelogenous Leukemia Patients on Oral Anticancer Therapy at a Large Academic Medical Center

Purpose of review: Since the discovery of imatinib, an oral breakpoint cluster region-Abelson murine leukemia tyrosine kinase inhibitor, chronic myelogenous leukemia transformed from a hematologic malignancy primarily treated with intravenous chemotherapy to a disease almost solely managed with oral agents. While certainly there are benefits to taking a medication at home, this change in treatment modality also came with unique challenges, including patient adherence, medication acquisition and cost, and toxicity management.

Recent findings: Pharmacists are uniquely equipped to assist with educating patients, safe prescribing, and access to medications. Several studies have described the benefits of an integrated oral anticancer medication management program in the ambulatory setting, including improvements in patient adherence, side effect management, patient comprehension, and drug-interaction detection. Pharmacists are also specially trained to assist with medication dose adjustments, relative lab monitoring, and co-pay assistance. Here, we describe the multidisciplinary workflows established to manage oral therapies in chronic myelogenous leukemia patients in a malignant hematology clinic at a large academic medical center. By using the unique talents of the clinic pharmacist, clinic nurse, and specialty retail pharmacy group, patients can be triaged to help ensure the correct skill set is used to optimally care for patients. An acuity-based monitoring structure can improve the ability to reach and safely monitor a large volume of patients.