Dr. El Chaer on the Limitations of JAK Inhibitors in Myelofibrosis

Firas El Chaer, MD, assistant professor of medicine, Division of Hematology/Oncology, Department of Medicine, Emily Couric Clinical Cancer Center, UVA Health, discusses the limitations of JAK inhibitors in myelofibrosis.

Currently, ruxolitinib (Jakafi) and fedratinib (Inrebic) are approved for the treatment of patients with myelofibrosis, El Chaer explains. Typically, these agents are used to treat the symptoms associated with myelofibrosis, such as B symptoms and splenomegaly, says El Chaer.

However, JAK inhibitors do not offer curative benefit to patients with myelofibrosis and the survival advantage associated with these agents is modest, El Chaer says. As such, the majority of patients require a bone marrow transplant.

To increase the utility of JAK inhibitors, combination strategies with ruxolitinib or fedratinib and other agents, such as BCL-2 inhibitors or PIM kinase inhibitors, are being investigated in ongoing clinical trials, concludes El Chaer.