In this article, we have presented the development and validation of a rapid and sensitive reversed-phase liquid chromatography with tandem mass spectrometry (LC-MS/MS) method for the determination of vincristine (VCR) in patient serum samples. Chromatographic separation was achieved on a Kinetex® (Singapore) column using a mobile phase consisting of 25 mM acetic acid and 0.3% formic acid (A) and methanol (B) in a gradient elution mode at a flow rate of 0.3 mL/min. The VCR and internal standard (vinblastine) were monitored using the multiple reaction monitoring mode under positive electrospray ionization. The lower limit of quantification (LLOQ) was 0.67 ng/mL, and the upper limit of quantification (ULOQ) was 250 ng/mL for VCR. The calculated values of LOD and LOQ for VCR were 0.075 and 0.228 ng/mL, respectively. The calibration curve was linear over the VCR concentration range of 1.0−250 ng/mL in serum. The intra- and inter-day precision and precision were within the generally accepted criteria for the bioanalytical method (<15%). The method was successfully applied to the analysis of serum samples in clinical practice.
Keywords: LC-MS/MS method; clinical practice; oncovine; vincristine.