The inhibition of the DNA damage response (DDR) pathway in the treatment of cancers has recently reached an exciting stage with several cell cycle checkpoint inhibitors that are now being tested in several clinical trials in cancer patients. Although the great amount of pre-clinical and clinical data are from the solid tumor experience, only few studies have been done on leukemias using specific cell cycle checkpoint inhibitors. This review aims to summarize the most recent data found on the biological mechanisms of the response to DNA damages highlighting the role of the different elements of the DDR pathway in normal and cancer cells and focusing on the main genetic alteration or aberrant gene expression that has been found on acute and chronic leukemias. This review, for the first time, outlines the most important pre-clinical and clinical data available on the efficacy of cell cycle checkpoint inhibitors in single agent and in combination with different agents normally used for the treatment of acute and chronic leukemias.
Keywords: Acute lymphoblastic leukemia; Acute myeloid leukemia; Checkpoint kinase inhibitor; Chronic lymphocytic leukemia; Chronic myeloid leukemia; DNA damage response.