Predictors of response to hydroxyurea and switch to ruxolitinib in HU-resistant polycythaemia vera patients: A real-world PV-NET study

According to data from the real-world PV-NET trial of patients with polycythemia vera who were receiving hydroxyurea (HU) for ≥ 12 months, the absence of splenomegaly (p = 0.03), pruritus (p = 0.002), and a median HU dose of ≥ 1 g/day (p < 0.001) were associated with complete response. Among patients who achieved, partial or no response, 283 (71.3%) continued HU and 114 (28.7%) switched to ruxolitinib. The rates of thrombosis, hemorrhages, progression, and overall survival among patients receiving only HU were comparable among the complete, partial, and no response groups. This study confirmed the need to identify patients with suboptimal response to HU to improve overall therapeutic strategy, which was previously reported in MAJIC-PV and RESPONSE study.