« Collectively, the ability of IFNα to target the disease-initiating mutant clone and the emergence of safer, more easy-to-use, and longer acting Ropeg foretells a brilliant future in the field of MPN, as we now have a promising disease-modifying agent that could someday help eradicate this clonal disorder. In fact, studies have shown that IFNα induces complete molecular response in about 10–15% of the treated patients, and JAK2V617F mutation was rendered undetectable in a similar percentage of patients treated beyond 4 years in the PROUD/CONTI-PV study. Our clinical experience somehow echoes this finding, as two patients exposed to this agent for the longest duration (both more than 60 weeks) had drastically declined JAK2 mutant AB below 20% »
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Manouche
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Did you read what the famous Dr Talpaz wrote last year about ET and interferon ?
Moshe Talpaz, MD: I studied it in 1998; it was a long time ago. A patient who I started with essential thrombocythemia but JAK2 positivity. I started to treat her in the late 1980s. And she developed a complete molecular response after 25 years. She is in remission now, after 30 years on therapy. She still gets it on and off.
That is very encouraging. Can we dare to envisage a time free of our symptoms, medication and ultimately our genetic misfiring? About 10 years ago I had a few months free from pegasys. I am hazy on the explanation give en at the time but I have a vague memory of the calming down of the Jak2 to produce some sort of remission. But there wasnt any removal of Jak2 and it soon became active again. It will be interesting to hear, in layman's language, how the INFa works. Thank you for posting this. Mairead
« Interferons are proteins that are part of your natural defenses. They tell your immune system that germs or cancer cells are in your body. And they trigger killer immune cells to fight those invaders »
It would be interesting to ask your haem why you were off Pegasys for a few months. It could have been for toxicity, blood count, or molecular reasons. I suppose that patients who manage to get both a full haematological and molecular remission can become symptom free.
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Getting frustrated with the delay approval of ropeg In the US 
