Monitoring imatinib plasma concentrations in chronic myeloid leukemia

Imatinib has proved to be effective in the treatment of chronic myeloid leukemia, but plasma levels above 1,000 ng/mL must be achieved to optimize activity. Therapeutic drug monitoring of imatinib is useful for patients that do not present clinical response. There are several analytical methods to measure imatinib in biosamples, which are mainly based on liquid chromatography with mass spectrometric or diode array spectrophotometric detection. The former is preferred due to its lower cost and wider availability. The present manuscript presents a review of the clinical and analytical aspects of the therapeutic drug monitoring of imatinib in the treatment of chronic myeloid leukemia. The review includes references published over the last 10 years. There is evidence that the monitoring of plasmatic levels of imatinib is an useful alternative, especially considering the wide pharmacokinetic variability of this drug.