Ponatinib, sold under the brand name Iclusig, is a medication used for the treatment of chronic myeloid leukemia and Philadelphia chromosome–positive (Ph+) acute lymphoblastic leukemia.[4] It was developed by Ariad Pharmaceuticals. It is a multi-targeted tyrosine-kinase inhibitor.[5] Some forms of chronic myeloid leukemia, those that have the T315I mutation, are resistant to current therapies such as imatinib. Ponatinib has been designed to be effective against these types of tumors.[6]

Ponatinib
Clinical data
Pronunciation/pˈnætɪnɪb/ poh-NAT-i-nib
Trade namesIclusig
Other namesAP24534
AHFS/Drugs.comMonograph
MedlinePlusa613029
License data
Pregnancy
category
  • AU: D
Routes of
administration
By mouth
ATC code
Legal status
Legal status
Pharmacokinetic data
BioavailabilityUnknown
Protein binding>99% (in vitro)
MetabolismLiver (CYP3A4, 2C8, 2D6, 3A5)
Elimination half-life12–66 hours
ExcretionFeces (87%), urine (5%)[4]
Identifiers
  • 3-(2-Imidazo[1,2-b]pyridazin-3-ylethynyl)-4-methyl-N-[4-[(4-methylpiperazin-1-yl)methyl]-3-(trifluoromethyl)phenyl]benzamide
CAS Number
PubChem CID
DrugBank
ChemSpider
UNII
KEGG
ChEBI
ChEMBL
CompTox Dashboard (EPA)
Chemical and physical data
FormulaC29H27F3N6O
Molar mass532.571 g·mol−1
3D model (JSmol)
  • Cc1ccc(cc1C#Cc2cnc3n2nccc3)C(=O)Nc4ccc(c(c4)C(F)(F)F)CN5CCN(CC5)C
  • InChI=1S/C29H27F3N6O/c1-20-5-6-22(16-21(20)8-10-25-18-33-27-4-3-11-34-38(25)27)28(39)35-24-9-7-23(26(17-24)29(30,31)32)19-37-14-12-36(2)13-15-37/h3-7,9,11,16-18H,12-15,19H2,1-2H3,(H,35,39)
  • Key:PHXJVRSECIGDHY-UHFFFAOYSA-N

The United States Food and Drug Administration (FDA) approved the medication as a candidate in December 2012, but temporarily suspended sales in October 2013, because of "the risk of life-threatening blood clots and severe narrowing of blood vessels".[7][8] The suspension was partially lifted on in December 2013, with ponatinib being issued revised prescribing information, a new "Black Box Warning" and a "Risk Evaluation and Mitigation Strategy" in place to better evaluate the risks and benefits of using the drug.[citation needed]

Medical uses

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Ponatinib in indicated for the treatment of adults with Philadelphia chromosome-positive acute lymphoblastic leukemia and chronic myeloid leukemia.[4]

Adverse effects

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The FDA issued a partial clinical hold on new trial enrollment for ponatinib in October 2013, due to an increased number of blood clots observed in patients taking the drug.[9] The EPIC trial was later canceled in October 2013.[10] Subsequent studies of 449 patients treated during 4 years with ponatinib for chronic phase chronic myelogenous leukemia found the following adverse reactions. 150 Patients experienced cardiac vascular (21% of patients), peripheral vascular (12%), and cerebrovascular (9%) arterial occlusive events. Venous thromboembolic events occurred in 6% of patients. The most common all-grade adverse events included hypertension (69%), rash (63%), abdominal pain (48%), fatigue (47%), headache (43%), arterial ischemia (42%), dry skin (42%), constipation (41%), arthralgia (32%), nausea (28%), pyrexia (26%), peripheral neuropathy (24%), myalgia (24%), pain in extremity (23%), back pain (21%), and diarrhea (20%). In addition, there have been reported cases of the posterior reversible encephalopathy syndrome.[11] Recently, an analogue of ponatinib was developed that retained anti-tumor efficacy but had reduced cardiovascular toxicity in experimental models.[12]

Clinical trials

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In 2010, Ariad announced result from a phase I study of ponatinib in patients with resistant and refractory chronic myeloid leukemia and Philadelphia-positive acute lymphoblastic leukemia (Ph+ ALL). The study demonstrated that in chronic-phase chronic myeloid leukemia patients treated with ponatinib, 66 percent of patients in the trial achieved a major cytogenetic response, including 100 percent of patients who also had a T315I mutation.[citation needed]

The PACE (Ponatinib Ph+ ALL and chronic myeloid leukemia Evaluation) pivotal phase II trial started enrolling patients in September 2010 and is designed to provide definitive clinical data for regulatory approval in this setting. Good results were reported in December 2012.[13][14]

The EPIC (Evaluation of Ponatinib versus Imatinib in chronic myeloid leukemia) phase-III trial began in June 2012 [15] and was halted[clarification needed][10] on October 18, 2013.

Mechanism of action

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The primary target for ponatinib is BCR-ABL, an abnormal tyrosine kinase that is the hallmark of chronic myeloid leukemia and Philadelphia-positive acute lymphoblastic leukemia. Chronic myeloid leukemia is characterized by an excessive and unregulated production of white blood cells by the bone marrow due to a genetic abnormality that produces the BCR-ABL protein. After a chronic phase of production of too many white blood cells, chronic myeloid leukemia typically evolves to more aggressive phases such as accelerated or blast crisis. Philadelphia-positive acute lymphoblastic leukemia is a subtype of acute lymphoblastic leukemia that carries the Ph+ chromosome that produces BCR-ABL. It has a more aggressive course than chronic myeloid leukemia and is often treated with a combination of chemotherapy and tyrosine kinase inhibitors. Because both of these diseases express the BCR-ABL protein, this would render them potentially susceptible to treatment with ponatinib. BCR-ABL is detected in 95% of patients with chronic myeloid leukemia.[citation needed]

History

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Ponatinib was designed using Ariad's computational and structure-based drug design platform to inhibit the enzymatic activity of BCR-ABL with very high potency and broad specificity. Ponatinib was intended to target not only native BCR-ABL, but also its isoforms that carry mutations that confer resistance to treatment with existing tyrosine kinase inhibitors, including especially the T315I mutation for which no effective therapy exists.[16]

The road to discovery is linked to AP23464, one of the first of Ariad's ATP competitive dual Src/Abl inhibitors. AP23464 was identified using structure base drug design and focused synthetic libraries of trisubstituted purine analogs. The substance potently inhibits Src and Bcr-Abl kinases including many common imatinib-resistant Bcr-Abl mutations. AP23464 does not inhibit the T315I mutation, however, whereas ponatinib does.

Society and culture

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Ponatinib was approved by the US FDA in December 2012, for people with resistant or intolerant chronic myeloid leukemia and Philadelphia-positive acute lymphoblastic leukemia, based on results of the PACE phase II trial.[13] Based on additional studies, the FDA granted full approval in 2016 and updated the label to include people with chronic phase, accelerated phase, or blast phase chronic myeloid leukemia and Philadelphia chromosome-positive acute lymphoblastic leukemia for whom no other tyrosine kinase inhibitor therapy is indicated. Approval was also granted for T315I-positive and T315I-positive Philadelphia chromosome positive acute lymphoblastic leukemia.[11]

Economics

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The medication costs $138,000 per year.[17][18]

As of 2015, ponatinib is available in England for the treatment of chronic myeloid leukemia (chronic phase, accelerated phase or blast phase) and Philadelphia-positive acute lymphoblastic leukemia in patients with documented T315I mutation under the Cancer Drugs Fund,[19] and has not been appraised by the National Institute for Health and Care Excellence (NICE), who noted the small expected patient population.[20] NICE estimated that ponatinib would cost approximately £61,000 per year, but the price paid under the Cancer Drugs Fund is confidential and may be different.

References

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  1. ^ "Prescription medicines: registration of new chemical entities in Australia, 2014". Therapeutic Goods Administration (TGA). 21 June 2022. Archived from the original on 10 April 2023. Retrieved 10 April 2023.
  2. ^ "Product monograph brand safety updates". Health Canada. 7 July 2016. Retrieved 1 April 2024.
  3. ^ "Health Canada New Drug Authorizations: 2015 Highlights". Health Canada. 4 May 2016. Retrieved 7 April 2024.
  4. ^ a b c d "Iclusig- ponatinib hydrochloride tablet, film coated". DailyMed. 10 November 2022. Archived from the original on 6 October 2022. Retrieved 11 April 2023.
  5. ^ Huang WS, Metcalf CA, Sundaramoorthi R, Wang Y, Zou D, Thomas RM, et al. (June 2010). "Discovery of 3-[2-(imidazo[1,2-b]pyridazin-3-yl)ethynyl]-4-methyl-N-{4-[(4-methylpiperazin-1-yl)methyl]-3-(trifluoromethyl)phenyl}benzamide (AP24534), a potent, orally active pan-inhibitor of breakpoint cluster region-abelson (BCR-ABL) kinase including the T315I gatekeeper mutant". Journal of Medicinal Chemistry. 53 (12): 4701–4719. doi:10.1021/jm100395q. PMID 20513156.
  6. ^ O'Hare T, Shakespeare WC, Zhu X, Eide CA, Rivera VM, Wang F, et al. (November 2009). "AP24534, a pan-BCR-ABL inhibitor for chronic myeloid leukemia, potently inhibits the T315I mutant and overcomes mutation-based resistance". Cancer Cell. 16 (5): 401–412. doi:10.1016/j.ccr.2009.09.028. PMC 2804470. PMID 19878872.
  7. ^ "FDA asks manufacturer of the leukemia drug Iclusig (ponatinib) to suspend marketing and sales". U.S. Food and Drug Administration. 31 October 2013. Archived from the original on 2 November 2017. Retrieved 16 December 2019.
  8. ^ Grady D (31 October 2013). "Serious Danger of Blood Clots Halts Sale of Leukemia Drug". The New York Times. Archived from the original on 18 September 2021. Retrieved 28 February 2017.
  9. ^ Carroll J (9 October 2013). "UPDATED: Ariad hammered on toxicity concerns for leukemia drug Iclusig". Fierce Biotech. FierceBiotech. Archived from the original on 3 March 2016. Retrieved 9 October 2013.
  10. ^ a b "Ariad Announces Discontinuation of the Phase 3 Epic Trial of Iclusig in Patients with Newly Diagnosed Chronic Myeloid Leukemia". Archived from the original on 18 October 2013.
  11. ^ a b "FDA Grants Ponatinib Full Approval for Rare Leukemias". 29 November 2016. Archived from the original on 22 March 2020. Retrieved 31 May 2017.
  12. ^ Hnatiuk AP, Bruyneel AA, Tailor D, Pandrala M, Dheeraj A, Li W, et al. (August 2022). "Reengineering Ponatinib to Minimize Cardiovascular Toxicity". Cancer Research. 82 (15): 2777–2791. doi:10.1158/0008-5472.CAN-21-3652. PMC 9620869. PMID 35763671. S2CID 250115772.
  13. ^ a b Gever J (14 December 2012). "Ponatinib Wins Early FDA Nod". Oncology/Hematology. MedPageToday.com. Archived from the original on 27 January 2021. Retrieved 16 December 2012.
  14. ^ Gever J (10 December 2012). "Ponatinib Retains Luster in Leukemia". Oncology/Hematology. MedPageToday.com. Archived from the original on 18 September 2021. Retrieved 16 December 2012.
  15. ^ "Ponatinib in Newly Diagnosed Chronic Myeloid Leukemia". 5 November 2014. Archived from the original on 19 October 2013. Retrieved 18 October 2013.
  16. ^ Zhou T, Commodore L, Huang WS, Wang Y, Thomas M, Keats J, et al. (January 2011). "Structural mechanism of the Pan-BCR-ABL inhibitor ponatinib (AP24534): lessons for overcoming kinase inhibitor resistance". Chemical Biology & Drug Design. 77 (1): 1–11. doi:10.1111/j.1747-0285.2010.01054.x. PMID 21118377. S2CID 22604788.
  17. ^ Pollack A (25 April 2013). "Doctors Denounce Cancer Drug Prices of $100,000 a Year". The New York Times. Archived from the original on 21 February 2017. Retrieved 28 February 2017.
  18. ^ Experts in Chronic Myeloid Leukemia (May 2013). "The price of drugs for chronic myeloid leukemia (CML) is a reflection of the unsustainable prices of cancer drugs: from the perspective of a large group of CML experts". Blood. 121 (22): 4439–4442. doi:10.1182/blood-2013-03-490003. PMC 4190613. PMID 23620577.
  19. ^ "National Cancer Drugs Fund list Ver4.3" (PDF). NHS England. 5 June 2015. Archived from the original (PDF) on 18 July 2015. Retrieved 11 April 2018.
  20. ^ "Consultation on Batch 33 draft remits and draft scopes and summary of comments and discussions at scoping workshops" (PDF). National Institute for Health and Care Excellence. Archived from the original (PDF) on 1 November 2018.