title: Autologous bone marrow transplantation after a long first remission for children with recurrent acute lymphoblastic leukemia.
abstract: Fifty-one children with acute lymphoblastic leukemia (ALL) in second or subsequent remission after a first remission of at least 24 months underwent purged, autologous bone marrow transplantation (ABMT). Bone marrow was harvested in remission and purged in vitro with monoclonal antibodies specific for leukemia-associated antigens. Ablative chemotherapy included cytarabine, teniposide, and cyclophosphamide followed by total body irradiation. Of the 51 patients treated between November 1980 and June 1991, 5 died of treatment-related complications, 18 relapsed, 1 died of a second tumor at 6.7 years, and 27 remained in continuous complete remission for a median of 39 months (range, 9+ to 124+). Event-free survival (EFS) (+/- SE) at 3 years after ABMT was 53% +/- 7%. Leukemia-free survival (LFS) was 58% +/- 8%. In multivariate analysis, the most significant predictors of EFS were duration of longest pre-ABMT remission and remission duration immediately before ABMT. For LFS, the most significant predictors were cell dose per kilogram of marrow reinfused and duration of longest pre-ABMT remission. We conclude that ABMT for this population is an effective therapy available to the majority of children with relapsed ALL.
authors.affiliation: Department of Pediatric Oncology, Dana-Farber Cancer Institute, Boston, MA 02115.
authors.forename: A L
authors.initials: AL
authors.lastname: Billett
authors.forename: E
authors.initials: E
authors.lastname: Kornmehl
authors.forename: N J
authors.initials: NJ
authors.lastname: Tarbell
authors.forename: H J
authors.initials: HJ
authors.lastname: Weinstein
authors.forename: R D
authors.initials: RD
authors.lastname: Gelber
authors.forename: J
authors.initials: J
authors.lastname: Ritz
authors.forename: S E
authors.initials: SE
authors.lastname: Sallan
mesh_terms: D000293:Adolescent; D016026:Bone Marrow Transplantation / Q000401:mortality; D002648:Child; D002675:Child, Preschool; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D008297:Male; D054198:Precursor Cell Lymphoblastic Leukemia-Lymphoma / Q000401:mortality / Q000601:surgery*; D012008:Recurrence; D015996:Survival Rate; D014182:Transplantation, Autologous