Limited erythropoietic response to combined treatment with recombinant human interleukin 3 and erythropoietin in myelodysplastic syndrome

Twenty-two patients with myelodysplastic syndrome were treated with combine d recombinant human erythropoietin and recombinant human interleukin 3 (rHu IL-3). All 22 patients were evaluable for toxicity and 21/22 for response. Thirteen patients (62%) required rHuIL-3 dose reduction because of toxicity . Nineteen experienced a 50% or greater rise in neutrophil count. Of seven patients with initial platelet counts of > 100000, three experienced increa ses of > 15000/ml while an equal number had a comparable decline. Five pati ents (21%) experienced a significant rise in reticulocyte count, and two tr ansfusion-dependent patients experienced a significant decrease in transfus ions. Erythroid burst-forming units were increased by greater than or equal to 50% in nine of 11 patients after combined therapy. Similar changes were seen in multipotential colony-forming units. Clinical responses were compa rable to results obtained with epo alone while toxicities due to IL-3 were significant. (C) 1998 Elsevier Science Ltd. All rights reserved.