Effects of hepatic impairment on the pharmacokinetics of nilotinib: an open-label, single-dose, parallel-group study.

Background: Nilotinib is a second-generation BCR-ABL tyrosine kinase inhibitor approved for the treatment of patients who have imatinib-resistant Philadelphia chromosome-positive chronic myeloid leukemia in the chronic or accelerated phase or who are unable to tolerate imatinib. Nilotinib is metabolized in the liver via oxidation and hydroxylation pathways, mediated primarily by the cytochrome P450 3A4 isozyme. Interpatient variability in systemic exposure to nilotinib has been reported to range from 32% to 64%.