Sequential treatment with Zolinza, idarubicin, and cytarabine is safe and highly effective in patients with acute myeloid leukemia and higher-risk myelodysplastic syndromes, according to results from a recent Phase 2 study.

The study authors also found that patients with mutations in the FLT-3 gene responded particularly well to the drug combination, yielding an overall response rate of 100 percent.

Dr. Guillermo Garcia-Manero of the MD Anderson Cancer Center in Houston presented these findings at the 2011 American Society of Hematology (ASH) conference in San Diego last month.

Zolinza (vorinostat), which…

Results of a Phase 1/2 study suggest that tipifarnib in combination with cytarabine and idarubicin is effective and safe in high-risk myelodysplastic syndromes and acute myeloid leukemia patients.

However, the study authors pointed out that the response and survival rates associated with this treatment were similar to those that can be achieved with cytarabine and idarubicin alone. Only patients with abnormalities in chromosomes 5 and 7 showed a trend for better response rates with the tipifarnib-based combination treatment compared to cytarabine and idarubicin alone.

The study authors therefore recommended that…