OBJECTIVES: Chronic myeloid leukemia (CML) remains a significant health concern, despite advancements in treatment strategies. To evaluate the effectiveness of new treatments for CML, it is important to include appropriate utility estimates in economic models for submission to reimbursement agencies. This review aimed to access studies reporting health-state utilities for patients with CML.

METHODS: A comprehensive search was conducted in MEDLINE^®, EMBASE^®, Cochrane library, including health technology assessment (HTA) reports and relevant conference proceedings. English language publications from 2000 to Feb 8, 2024, reporting utilities/disutilities of CML or mapping algorithms from health-related quality of life (HRQoL) to utilities were included. Disutility values related to blood cancers other than CML were also considered.

RESULTS: Thirty-nine studies including HTAs met the inclusion criteria. The EuroQol-5D (EQ-5D) was the most widely adopted tool to estimate health-state utilities. According to Foulon et.al study, the mean utility value for molecular response among chronic phase CML patients receiving frontline therapy was 0.76 compared to that of 0.68 among those receiving second or third-line treatment. Patients achieving treatment-free remission (TFR) reported a mean utility value of 0.84. Among accelerated phase CML patients, the reported mean utility values ranged from 0.44 to 0.79, while for blast phase CML patients it ranged between 0.21 to 0.59. Overall, utility values across studies demonstrated a declining trend as patients transitioned from their initial line of therapy and disease progression. Additionally, disutility values for CML patients receiving different tyrosine kinase inhibitors ranged from -0.019 to -0.01.

CONCLUSIONS: This review highlights the worsening HRQoL associated with disease progression in CML, while showing the associated benefit for patients achieving TFR. These findings should be considered by decision-makers in optimizing care strategies and health-economic models. Treatment options aligning with patient experiences may lead to effective management of CML.