Indications and Usage

Ruxolitinib is FDA approved for treatment of  

• Intermediate or high-risk myelofibrosis, including primary myelofibrosis, post-polycythemia vera myelofibrosis and post-essential thrombocythemia myelofibrosis in adults
• Polycythemia vera in adults who have had an inadequate response to or are intolerant of hydroxyurea
• Steroid-refractory acute graft-versus-host disease in adult and pediatric patients 12 years and older. 

Side effects needing medical attention

Bruising; dizziness; headache; urinary tract infection; weight gain; flatulence; herpes zoster; low platelet counts; low red blood cell counts; low white blood cell counts. 

Tuberculosis has been reported in patients receiving ruxolitinib for myelofibrosis.

Progressive multifocal leukoencephalopathy (PML), a rare but serious brain infection that can result in death, has been reported with ruxolitinib treatment for myelofibrosis. 

Side effects needing medical attention after stopping this medication

Following interruption or discontinuation of ruxolitinib, symptoms of myelofibrosis generally return to pretreatment levels over a period of approximately 1 week. There have been isolated cases of patients discontinuing Jakafi during acute intervening illnesses, after which the patient's clinical course continued to worsen. It has not been established whether discontinuation of therapy contributed to the clinical course in these patients. When discontinuing therapy for reasons other than thrombocytopenia, gradual tapering of the dose of Jakafi may be considered.

For information on how to manage the costs of drug therapy, please see Financial Support, or to speak with an Information Specialist, call (800) 955-4572.