Strategies for the prophylaxis of invasive fungal diseases in acute myeloid leukemia patients undergoing Bcl-2 inhibitor venetoclax treatment.

Abstract

Patients with acute myeloid leukemia (AML) are at high risk of developing invasive fungal disease (IFD) with high morbidity and attributable mortality, including those who were received Venetoclax treatment. Venetoclax, a new oral Bcl-2 inhibitor, targets tumor cells' ability to induce apoptosis. It is the only one which is approved by Food and Drug Administration (FDA) for treating newly diagnosed AML patients who are 75 years of age or older and are ineligible for intensive induction chemotherapy due to existing comorbidities. It has been shown that venetoclax-based regimens raise the risk of invasive fungal diseases (IFD) for AML patients in clinical practice. Because it can lead to prolonged and profound neutropenia in AML patients, with IFD incidence rates ranging from 5.1 % to 32 %, resulting in higher mortality rates. Because of drug-drug interactions between Venetoclax and partial antifungal agents, to choose anti-fungal prophylaxis and to adjust the dosage of agents rationally for AML patients seems crucial to physicians to those who are undergoing venetoclax-based chemotherapy. Therefore, this review aims to summary the mechanism and characteristic of IFD in AML patients and provide practical clinical suggestions and details for the prophylaxis of IFD in AML patients suffering Venetoclax-based treatment.