Generics in chronic myeloid leukemia: current arguments for and against and the established evidence

Abstract

Tyrosine kinase inhibitors became the mainstay of management in patients with chronic myeloid leukemia. The substantially high treatment cost has unfortunately been a major issue. Recent market entry of the imatinib generics are expected to lower the price and increase the availability of the drug worldwide. However, concerns about their efficacy and safety seem to slacken the approval of the generics in many countries. In this editorial, we discuss the current evidence on imatinib generics based mainly on Turkish experience and other limited data available.

Keywords: chronic myeloid leukemia; generic; imatinib; tyrosine kinase inhibitor.