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With the introduction of tyrosine kinase inhibitors (TKI), patients with chronic myeloid leukemia (CML) have obtained survival rates close to normal. It may appear paradoxical, then, that medication adherence is suboptimal in some health care settings. As the first of its kind, this study aimed to explore drivers and barriers to TKI treatment adherence in Danish CML patients. A literature study informed the design of qualitative interviews with 20 patients, individually and in focus groups, focusing on their disease perceptions of CML, their health-related quality of life (QoL) and medication adherence. The study showed that many participants had previously switched treatment due to lacking efficacy or intolerance but most felt their current disease burden was tolerable. Anxiety might, however, resurface if treatment stopped working or with the occurrence of infections or side effects, creating a state of 'fragile peace'. To these patients, their role functioning -as professionals, spouses, parents and grandparents -was crucial to uphold a positive self-image and meaningful life. Whether treatment enabled or hindered this was thus decisive to their QoL and medication adherence. Our participants expressed high adherence rates with only one having intentionally non-adhered due to side effects and poor QoL. Most participants felt well-informed about CML and treatment and privileged to receive specialised personal care from the public health care system acting to motivate their medication adherence. As a novel finding, this study indicates that the prospect of treatment-free remission may positively affect adherence. We suggest this should be explored in future studies.

The exposure to hypobaric hypoxia increased lipid peroxidation as indicated by thiobarbituric acid-reactive substances [TBARS] in rat brain. Plasma lactate/pyruvate ratio was used as a marker of hypoxia. We compared the protective effect of alpha-tocopherol with the effect of L-carnitine or phosphocreatine. Rats pretreated with alpha-tocopherol, L-carnitine, or phosphocreatine had lower TBARS levels after the exposure to hypobaric hypoxia. However, lactate/ pyruvate ratio was improved only in rats pretreated with L-carnitine or phosphocreatine. We conclude from our data that, contrary to alpha-tocopherol, protective effects of L-carnitine and phosphocreatine administrations are due to their regulation of metabolic reactions during hypobaric hypoxia rather than to their scavenger activity.