4 replies to this topic

[Floa7]

I just got back from the Doc with a three month check-up. My BCR-ABL was 0.015 and today it was 0.005. I don't understand your log reduction and all that. I know I am getting down there, but is this remission yet?

[chriskuo]

Remission is a tricky concept with respect to CML and TKIs.  If your numbers are International Scale, you were already better than MMR

(3 log reduction) which is a major and very good milestone.  Your latest reading is more than a 4 log reduction, which is approaching PCRu, which is the best that can be measured (generally a more than 4.5 log reduction).

 

Your hematologist should be explaining this to you.  To verify how the results are being reported, you really need to have this discussion with him/her.

[Trey]

Many labs would call that PCR Undetectable.  Either way it is very close to PCRU.

[CallMeLucky]

We don't technically get to remission, well maybe if we stop treatment and stay under control. While on meds we track response. The better the response the more likely you will continue to do well. That's not to say that if you don't get to pcru you are going to be in trouble. Even without pcru a cml patient can live a full life. It's all about odds which in the end don't me as much as we want them to. You are in a good place, do something good today because you can

[missjoy]

Do we have remission with CML?

"For anyone facing a cancer diagnosis, remission is a much sought after thing - a "safe haven." For those with Chronic Myelogenous Leukemia (CML), the word "remission" may often be replaced with the word "response" when discussing the disease with fellow survivors or medical teams** The reason being that remission is often times perceived in the general public, or perhaps thought of, as a state in which the disease has been eradicated or brought under complete control so that NO ADDITIONAL therapy/treatment (chemotherapy, biological therapy, radiation, surgery, etc.) is necessary.

With CML, patients are currently required to take a therapy drug indefinitely in order to keep the disease from reappearing. It is thought that the leukemic stem cell (LSC) that initiates the disease actually goes into hiding when therapy drugs (Tyrosine Kinase Inhibitors - TKIs) are introduced into a patient's system. These "hiding" cells are referred to as Quiescent LSCs. In most cases, TKI therapy will keep the disease from progressing to an accelerated or blast phase, yet does not eliminate the LSCs."