Characteristics of the study groups
| . | Imatinib (N = 50) (%) . | IFN-α (N = 274) (%) . | IFN-α + ara-C (N = 257) (%) . | IFN-α + ara-C + HHT (N = 90) (%) . | P . | P for imatinib versus all IFN-α regimens . |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Patient characteristics | ||||||
| Age older than 60 y | 13 (26) | 34 (12) | 28 (11) | 4 (4) | .002 | .004 |
| Male | 26 (52) | 166 (61) | 146 (57) | 46 (51) | NS | NS |
| Splenomegaly | 11 (22) | 116 (42) | 72 (28) | 26 (29) | .001 | NS |
| Hemoglobin less than 12g/dL | 19 (38) | 107 (39) | 95 (37) | 28 (31) | NS | NS |
| WBC count more than 50 × 109/L | 11 (22) | 143 (52) | 86 (33) | 20 (22) | <.001 | .02 |
| Platelets more than 450 × 109/L | 17 (34) | 122 (44) | 81 (32) | 29 (32) | .01 | NS |
| Peripheral blasts (any) | 14 (28) | 94 (34) | 66 (26) | 17 (19) | .02 | NS |
| Marrow blasts more than 5% | 0 (0) | 11 (4) | 11 (4) | 2 (2) | NS | NS |
| Peripheral basophils 7% or higher | 10 (20) | 46 (17) | 42 (16) | 16 (18) | NS | NS |
| Marrow basophils 4% or higher | 12 (24) | 63 (23) | 28 (11) | 19 (21) | .02 | NS |
| Cytogenetic clonal evolution | 0 (0) | 5 (2) | 20 (8) | 4 (4) | NS | NS |
| Risk group (Sokal model) | ||||||
| Good | 25 (51) | 124 (52) | 111 (56) | 34 (53) | NS | NS |
| Intermediate | 13 (26) | 58 (24) | 52 (26) | 24 (37) | ||
| Poor | 11 (22) | 54 (23) | 34 (17) | 6 (9) | ||
| Unknown | 9 | 38 | 60 | 26 |
| . | Imatinib (N = 50) (%) . | IFN-α (N = 274) (%) . | IFN-α + ara-C (N = 257) (%) . | IFN-α + ara-C + HHT (N = 90) (%) . | P . | P for imatinib versus all IFN-α regimens . |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Patient characteristics | ||||||
| Age older than 60 y | 13 (26) | 34 (12) | 28 (11) | 4 (4) | .002 | .004 |
| Male | 26 (52) | 166 (61) | 146 (57) | 46 (51) | NS | NS |
| Splenomegaly | 11 (22) | 116 (42) | 72 (28) | 26 (29) | .001 | NS |
| Hemoglobin less than 12g/dL | 19 (38) | 107 (39) | 95 (37) | 28 (31) | NS | NS |
| WBC count more than 50 × 109/L | 11 (22) | 143 (52) | 86 (33) | 20 (22) | <.001 | .02 |
| Platelets more than 450 × 109/L | 17 (34) | 122 (44) | 81 (32) | 29 (32) | .01 | NS |
| Peripheral blasts (any) | 14 (28) | 94 (34) | 66 (26) | 17 (19) | .02 | NS |
| Marrow blasts more than 5% | 0 (0) | 11 (4) | 11 (4) | 2 (2) | NS | NS |
| Peripheral basophils 7% or higher | 10 (20) | 46 (17) | 42 (16) | 16 (18) | NS | NS |
| Marrow basophils 4% or higher | 12 (24) | 63 (23) | 28 (11) | 19 (21) | .02 | NS |
| Cytogenetic clonal evolution | 0 (0) | 5 (2) | 20 (8) | 4 (4) | NS | NS |
| Risk group (Sokal model) | ||||||
| Good | 25 (51) | 124 (52) | 111 (56) | 34 (53) | NS | NS |
| Intermediate | 13 (26) | 58 (24) | 52 (26) | 24 (37) | ||
| Poor | 11 (22) | 54 (23) | 34 (17) | 6 (9) | ||
| Unknown | 9 | 38 | 60 | 26 |
HHT indicates homoharringtonine; and NS, not significant.