Introduction
Blueprint Medicines (BPMC) is a precision oncology biotechnology company. Lead indications include gastrointestinal stromal tumors (GISTs) and systemic mastocytosis ((SM)).
Blueprint's lead drug, avapritinib, targets KIT and PDGFR kinases, making it an appropriate candidate for GISTs.
GIST
Gastrointestinal stromal tumors (GISTs) are the most common mesenchymal tumors of the gastrointestinal tract and have gained considerable research and treatment interest, especially in the last two decades. GISTs are driven by mutations commonly found in the KIT gene and less commonly in the platelet-derived growth factor receptor alpha gene, BRAF gene and succinate dehydrogenase