Interferons for the treatment of hematological malignancies

Interferon (IFN) has diverse activities against the proliferation and function of various tumor cells. Recently, IFN-alpha has been widely used in the treatment of several hematological malignancies including chronic myelogenous leukemia (CML), multiple myeloma, and hairy cell leukemia. IFN-alpha is becoming a first-choice drug in the treatment of CML, because it has been reported to suppress or abolish the Ph1 chromosome in CML patients. IFN-alpha is used in combination with conventional chemotherapeutic regimens in the treatment of multiple myeloma. There are many ongoing trials that include IFN-alpha in their regimens to determine whether or not the prognosis of multiple myeloma can be improved. Although the precise mechanism of the action of IFN has not been fully explained, the clinical applications of IFN for various hematological malignancies are expanding.