title: A randomized comparison of maintenance treatment with androgens, immunotherapy, and chemotherapy in adult acute myelogenous leukemia. A Leukemia-Lymphoma Group Trial of the EORTC.
abstract: Twenty-three European centers participated in a randomized clinical trial (AML-5) to study the effect of androgens and immunotherapy during maintenance in adult acute myelogenous leukemia. Induction treatment consisted of Adriamycin (doxorubicin) 50 mg/m2 day 1, vincristine VCR 1 mg/m2 day 2, and cytosine arabinoside 80 mg/m2 every 12 hours by push injection days 3-9. Patients in complete remission were randomized into four groups: (1) 6-mercaptopurine 70 mg/m2 days 1-14, methotrexate 15 mg/m2 twice weekly days 15-28, and reinduction with daunorubicin 35 mg/m2 and vincristine 1 mg/m2 day 29; (2) chemotherapy as in group 1 plus stanozolol 0.15 mg/kg/day; (3) 6-thioguanine 70 mg/m2 orally on 4 consecutive days and cytosine arabinoside 80 mg/m2 subcutaneously day 5 every week; and (4) chemotherapy as in Group 3 plus irradiated blast cells treated with neuraminidase. Three hundred forty-eight patients were eligible and 295 were evaluable. The median age was 45 yrs. A complete remission was achieved in 64% of the patients, with 158 complete remissions randomized. Patients not randomized and patients receiving bone marrow transplantation (BMT) were analyzed separately. There was no difference in disease-free survival (DFS) or survival in the four maintenance arms. For patients reaching complete remission, the median DFS was 40 weeks, and median survival was 22 months with 30% surviving at 4 years. The overall survival was 18% at 4 years. There was no beneficial effect for DFS or survival by adding either immunotherapy or androgens to chemotherapy during maintenance. However, patients receiving immunotherapy seemed to have a higher rate of responses to reinduction after relapse than those in the other treatment arms.
mesh_terms: D000293:Adolescent; D000328:Adult; D000368:Aged; D000971:Antineoplastic Combined Chemotherapy Protocols / Q000627:therapeutic use*; D002648:Child; D002986:Clinical Trials as Topic; D003131:Combined Modality Therapy / Q000379:methods; D003561:Cytarabine / Q000008:administration & dosage; D003630:Daunorubicin / Q000008:administration & dosage; D004317:Doxorubicin / Q000008:administration & dosage; D006801:Humans; D007167:Immunotherapy; D015470:Leukemia, Myeloid, Acute / Q000401:mortality / Q000628:therapy*; D015122:Mercaptopurine / Q000008:administration & dosage; D008727:Methotrexate / Q000008:administration & dosage; D008875:Middle Aged; D011446:Prospective Studies; D011897:Random Allocation; D045165:Testosterone Congeners / Q000627:therapeutic use*; D013866:Thioguanine / Q000008:administration & dosage; D013997:Time Factors; D014750:Vincristine / Q000008:administration & dosage
chemical_list: D045165:Testosterone Congeners; D003561:Cytarabine; D014750:Vincristine; D004317:Doxorubicin; D015122:Mercaptopurine; D013866:Thioguanine; D008727:Methotrexate; D003630:Daunorubicin