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Previous Volume 350:2524-2525 June 10, 2004 Number 24 Next

	Since this article has no abstract, we have provided an extract of the first 100 words of the full text and any section headings.

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To the Editor: We appreciate Schafer's concise approach to thrombocytosis (March 18 issue)¹ but are less enthusiastic about promoting anagrelide as first-line therapy for patients with essential thrombocythemia. There have been no controlled trials of anagrelide that show a reduction in thrombotic outcomes. In one case series, a majority of patients had improvement in thrombocytosis, although 20 percent still had thrombotic complications.² A reduced platelet count is the goal of therapy in essential thrombocythemia only because it is a marker of disease activity. Thus, the therapeutic agent of choice must be selected primarily on the basis of its ability to . . . [Full Text of this Article]

This article has been cited by other articles:

• Tefferi, A. (2005). The Indolent Natural History of Essential Thrombocythemia: A Challenge to New Drug Development. Mayo Clin Proc. 80: 97-98