Raw research findings for this medication. Mostly single studies, not curated or confirmed robust.
Thioguanine (tioguanine) is a thiopurine chemotherapy medicine: it is built into the DNA of dividing cells in place of a normal building block, which stops them from multiplying. It is used mainly for acute myeloid leukaemia and sometimes for acute lymphoblastic leukaemia. It is sold as Tabloid, among other names; 6-TG is its short name.
Like the other thiopurines, thioguanine is inactivated by enzymes made by TPMT and NUDT15. People with low-activity versions of either gene build up more of the active form, so the bone marrow is affected more strongly at the same amount. CPIC and DPWG have published guidelines on both genes for the thiopurines, including thioguanine, and the US drug label discusses them. Only a few other genes have been studied for thioguanine.
Clinical guidelines that name a gene for Thioguanine. They sort people into groups by the gene copies they carry.
Every published finding on gene variants and Thioguanine. Upload your DNA file to see which of these rows apply to you.
PharmGKB weighs all studies of a variant and rates how strong the evidence is, from 1A (strongest) to 4.
TPMT TPMT*1, TPMT*2, TPMT*3A, TPMT*3B, TPMT*3C, TPMT*7, TPMT*9, TPMT*10, TPMT*12, TPMT*13, TPMT*16, TPMT*17, TPMT*18, TPMT*23: Level 1A · replicated. Metabolism/PK: Crohn Disease. 7.
TPMT TPMT*1, TPMT*2, TPMT*3A, TPMT*3C, TPMT*9: Level 1A · replicated. Toxicity: Acute lymphoblastic leukemia, Neoplasms, Neutropenia, Pancytopenia, Thrombocytopenia. 4.
TPMT TPMT*1, TPMT*2, TPMT*3A, TPMT*3C, TPMT*9: Level 1A · replicated. Dosage: Acute lymphoblastic leukemia. 1.
TPMT TPMT*1, TPMT*19, TPMT*20, TPMT*21, TPMT*22, TPMT*30, TPMT*32, TPMT*33, TPMT*34: Level 3. Metabolism/PK. 5.
Studies of how quickly the body processes this medication.
Studies of how much of the drug people needed or tolerated.
Studies that do not fall into the groups above.
TPMT TPMT*1, TPMT*32: TPMT *1/*32 is associated with increased concentrations of thioguanine.
Study findings and evidence levels: PharmGKB (CC BY-SA 4.0). Guidelines: CPIC and DPWG, as bundled in PharmCAT. Most studies were done mainly in people of European ancestry.
More drugs from the same category
Not a prescribing recommendation. This page is educational information about pharmacogenomic research and clinical guidelines - it is not medical or dosing advice, and not a prediction of how any medication will work for you. Never start, stop, or change a medication or dose based on it; talk to your doctor or pharmacist, who can order clinical-grade testing if appropriate.
Content updated September 2026.
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