Mercaptopurine
Mercaptopurine is a daily tablet, or a liquid for children, that keeps acute lymphoblastic leukaemia in remission during the long maintenance phase of treatment.
Overview
Mercaptopurine, developed by Elion and Hitchings and approved in 1953, is indicated for acute lymphoblastic leukaemia as part of a combination maintenance regimen; daily oral mercaptopurine with weekly methotrexate for two to three years is the backbone of maintenance in every paediatric and adult ALL protocol. Purixan (2014) is an oral suspension that made accurate paediatric dosing possible; the EU authorised the equivalent Xaluprine in 2012. TPMT and NUDT15 genotyping is recommended before starting because poor metabolisers suffer life-threatening myelosuppression on standard doses; hepatotoxicity and a small excess of later malignancy are recognised. Thioguanine is the related agent used in AML.
Approvals
| Region | Year | Indication |
|---|---|---|
| US | 1953 | Acute lymphoblastic leukaemia, combination maintenance therapy |
| US | 2014 | Oral suspension for ALL maintenance (Purixan) |
| EU | 2012 | ALL in adults, adolescents and children (Xaluprine oral suspension) |
Trials
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Latest papers
topQuery for this drug: (TITLE:"Mercaptopurine" OR ABSTRACT:"Mercaptopurine" OR TITLE:"Purinethol" OR ABSTRACT:"Purinethol" OR TITLE:"Purixan" OR ABSTRACT:"Purixan" OR TITLE:"6-MP" OR ABSTRACT:"6-MP" OR TITLE:"Xaluprine" OR ABSTRACT:"Xaluprine") AND (cancer OR tumor OR tumour OR oncology OR carcinoma OR lymphoma OR leukemia OR leukaemia OR myeloma OR sarcoma OR melanoma OR glioma). Results are unfiltered search hits about Mercaptopurine, not a curated reading list.
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