How Do I Know If Hydroxyurea is Not Right for Me?

Read below for Selected Safety Information. Hematologist-oncologist Gary Grad, MD, addresses the challenges that patients with polycythemia vera (PV) may experience when treated with a chemotherapy medicine called hydroxyurea. He explains that for some adults, hydroxyurea does not control blood counts well enough, while others cannot tolerate the side effects. Dr. Grad explains that PV patients treated with hydroxyurea should track their blood counts, talk with their Healthcare Professional, and ask about a targeted therapy treatment option such as Jakafi® (ruxolitinib).

This video is intended for informational use only, and is not designed to replace the medical advice of your Healthcare Professional.


Jakafi is a prescription medicine used to treat adults with polycythemia vera who have already taken a medicine called hydroxyurea and it did not work well enough or they could not tolerate it. Jakafi is also used to treat adults with certain types of myelofibrosis.

Selected Safety Information
Jakafi can cause serious side effects including low blood counts and infection. Some people who take Jakafi have developed certain types of non‐melanoma skin cancers. Increases in blood cholesterol levels can also occur. In patients who took another JAK inhibitor to treat rheumatoid arthritis, there was an increased risk of potentially fatal cardiovascular events like heart attack or stroke in patients with risk factors for these events who smoke now or smoked in the past, as well as an increased risk of blood clots in legs or lungs and new (secondary) cancers like lymphoma, especially in patients who smoke now or smoked in the past. The most common side effects of Jakafi for certain types of myelofibrosis and PV include: low platelet or red blood cell counts, bruising, dizziness, headache, and diarrhea. Call your doctor for medical advice about side effects.

To learn more about these and other risks, please read the Important Safety Information at https://www.jakafi.com/.

Please see the Full Prescribing Information at https://www.jakafi.com/pi/pi, which includes a more complete discussion of the risks associated with Jakafi.
You are encouraged to report negative side effects of prescription drugs to the FDA. Visit www.fda.gov/medwatch, or call 1-800-FDA-1088.
You may also report side effects to Incyte Medical Information at 1-855-463-3463.

Sponsored by Incyte Corporation. Jakafi is a registered trademark of Incyte.
© 2020, Incyte Corporation. MAT-JAK-03738 01/22