Sandbox: HCL therapy

Medical Therapy

• The mainstay of therapy for hairy cell leukemia patients is chemotherapy.
• Asymptomatic hairy cell leukemia patients, with no indications for therapy, may be managed by observation and close follow-up.
• Indications to initiate medical therapy among patients with hairy cell leukemia include:

• The presence of systemic symptoms such as fever, night sweats, and significant weight loss
• The presence of subcostal abdominal discomfort due splenic distension
• Positive history of recurrent infections.
• Hemoglobin concentration lower than 12 g/dl
• Platelets count lower than 100,000/mcl
• Absolute neutrophil count lower than 1000/mcl

• Pharmacological agents used for the treatment of hairy cell leukemia patients include:

• Cladribine
• Pentostatin
• Rituximab
• Interferon alpha
• Vemurafenib