Increased erythropoietin level induced by hydroxyurea treatment of sickle cell patients

The Hematology Journal : the Official Journal of the European Haematology Association
I PapassotiriouD Loukopoulos

Abstract

Administration of hydroxyurea in sickle cell disease is associated with a dramatic increase of HbF along with a significant clinical improvement and, occasionally, increased total hemoglobin levels. The underlying mechanisms are not yet fully elucidated. We report the response of three patients with homozygous sickle cell disease and 10 patients with compound HbS/beta-thalassemia (four with beta(o)thal/HbS and six with beta(+)thal/HbS respectively) to hydroxyurea treatment with regards to their serum erythropoietin levels (sEpo). Baseline sEpo levels varied from 33.0 to 284.0 IU/L and showed a significant negative correlation with the respective Hb values (P<0.007). Two to three weeks after initiation of treatment, the sEpo values started to increase and reached levels three to 31 times higher than the baseline two to three weeks later. Thereafter, in most cases the Epo values decreased and remained at intermediate levels throughout the rest of hydroxyurea administration, while in a few cases, they returned to baseline. An inappropriate increase of sEpo following treatment with various cytostatic drugs, independently of anemia induced by cytostatic agents, has already been reported in the literature. The cytostatics included cy...Continue Reading

Citations

May 14, 2005·Journal of Applied Physiology·Robin E Pattillo, L Bruce Gladden
Mar 19, 2003·Blood Reviews·Sally C Davies, Annette Gilmore
Mar 15, 2006·Trends in Pharmacological Sciences·Martin H Steinberg

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