The issue is the status of maintenance with any single agent drug. The maintenance concept has not been proven. As for Dacogen, Vidaza is not sufficiently studied to be routinely adopted. The most recent phase II study concluded: "5-azacytidine treatment is safe, feasible and may be of benefit in a subset of patients".
The Scottish Medicines Consortium does not recommend azacitidine (Vidaza®) for use within NHS Scotland for the treatment of adults who are not eligible for haematopoietic stem cell transplantation (SCT) with intermediate-2 and high-risk myelodysplastic syndrome (MDS), chronic myelomonocytic leukaemia (CMML) or acute myeloid leukaemia (AML).
Michael Grövdal et al, Maintenance treatment with azacytidine for patients with high-risk myelodysplastic syndromes (MDS) or acute myeloid leukaemia following MDS in complete remission after induction chemotherapy, B ritish Journal of Haematology
Volume 150 Issue 3, Pages 293 - 302, 2010
Reference: No. (589/09)
Source: Scottish Medicines Consortium (SMC)
Date published: 12/04/2010 16:30
http://www.nelm.nhs.uk/en/NeLM-Area/Evidence/Drug-Specific-Reviews/SMC-does-not-recommend-azacitidine-Vidaza-for-MDS-CMML-or-AML/
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