Efficacy and safety of ruxolitinib in patients with myelofibrosis and low platelet count (50 × 10/L to <100 × 10/L) at baseline: the final analysis of EXPAND.

Background: Thrombocytopenia is a common feature of myelofibrosis (MF), a myeloproliferative neoplasm driven by dysregulated JAK/STAT signaling; however, pivotal trials assessing the efficacy of ruxolitinib (a JAK1/2 inhibitor) excluded MF patients with low platelet counts (<100 × 10/L).

Objectives: Determination of the maximum safe starting dose (MSSD) of ruxolitinib was the primary endpoint, with long-term safety and efficacy as secondary and exploratory endpoints, respectively.

Design: EXPAND (NCT01317875) was a phase 1b, open-label, ruxolitinib dose-finding study in patients with MF and low platelet counts (50 to <100 × 10/L).

Methods: Patients were stratified according to baseline platelet count into stratum 1 (S1, 75 to <100 × 10/L) or stratum 2 (S2, 50 to <75 × 10/L). Previous analyses established the MSSD at 10 mg twice daily (bid); long-term results are reported here.

Results: Of 69 enrolled patients, 38 received ruxolitinib at the MSSD (S1,  = 20; S2,  = 18) and are the focus of this analysis. The incidence of adverse events was consistent with the known safety profile of ruxolitinib, with thrombocytopenia (S1, 50%; S2, 78%) and anemia (S1, 55%; S2, 44%) the most frequently reported adverse events and no new or unexpected safety signals. Substantial clinical benefits were observed for patients in both strata: 50% (10/20) and 67% (12/18) of patients in S1 and S2, respectively, achieved a spleen response (defined as ⩾50% reduction in spleen length from baseline) at any time during the study.

Conclusion: The final safety and efficacy results from EXPAND support the use of a 10 mg bid starting dose of ruxolitinib in patients with MF and platelet counts 50 to <100 × 10/L.

Registration: ClinicalTrials.gov NCT01317875.