Development and Validation of an LC-MS/MS Method to Quantify Gilteritinib and Its Clinical Application in Patients With FLT3 Mutation-Positive Acute Myelogenous Leukemia

Background: Gilteritinib, a novel oral tyrosine kinase inhibitor, is used to treat acute myeloid leukemia (AML) with FMS-like tyrosine kinase-3 (FLT3) mutations. Therapeutic drug monitoring (TDM) of gilteritinib is important for improving clinical outcomes and ensuring safety. Therefore, this study aimed to develop a simplified method for quantifying gilteritinib in human plasma using liquid chromatography-tandem mass spectrometry. Methods: Liquid chromatography was performed by using an Acquity BEH C18 column (50 mm x 2.1 mm, 1.7 mu m) and a gradient elution with 0.1% formic acid in water (A) and acetonitrile (B). Detection was performed by using a Shimadzu tandem mass spectrometer through multiple reaction monitoring in the positive-ion mode. Results: The developed method enabled quantification of gilteritinib in 4 minutes and was validated by evaluating selectivity, calibration curve (10-1000 ng/mL, r(2) > 0.99), a lower limit of quantification (LLOQ), accuracy (overall bias -4.2% to 1.9%), precision (intraday CV <= 7.9%; interday CV <= 13.6%), carryover, recovery, matrix effect, dilution integrity, and stability according to the US Food and Drug Administration (FDA) guidelines. This method was successfully applied to the TDM of gilteritinib trough concentrations in 3 patients with AML. Conclusions: The developed method fulfilled the FDA guideline criteria and can easily be implemented to facilitate TDM in patients receiving gilteritinib in a clinical setting.