title: [Preliminary study on postremission therapy courses in acute myeloid leukemia].
abstract: OBJECTIVE
  To explore the optimum postremission therapy courses in acute myeloid leukemia (AML).
  
  
  METHODS
  Data from medical records of AML patients in our hospital in 7 year were analyzed with SPSS 8.0 system software.
  
  
  RESULTS
  One hundred and ninety one untreated de novo AML patients received different induction chemotherapy regimens: HA, DA, AA and HAD. The complete remission (CR) rate was 81.4%, 89.9% for one to two courses. The median disease free survival (DFS) in 144 CR patients whose survival time could be analyzed was 9.6 months. The probability of survival was 21.6% at 3 year and 12.9% at 5 year. For the patients received less than 6 courses of post-remission therapy, the median DFS was 7.1 months and the probability of survival was 11.4% at 3 year and 6.3% at 5 years, Whereas for patients received 6 or more courses of post-remission therapy, they were 35.3 months, 43.2% and 27.0%, respectively. The differences between the two groups were statistically significant. For patients received 8 or more courses of post-remission therapy, the median DFS was 48.8 months and the probability of survival was 57.9% at 3 year and 31.6% at 5 year.
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  AML patients should at least receive 6 courses of post-remission therapy, and 8 courses therapy seems better.
authors.affiliation: Institute of Hematology, CAMS, PUMC, Tianjin 300020, China.
authors.forename: Y
authors.initials: Y
authors.lastname: Mi
authors.forename: S
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Bian
authors.forename: Y
authors.initials: Y
authors.lastname: Xue
mesh_terms: D000208:Acute Disease; D000293:Adolescent; D000328:Adult; D000368:Aged; D000971:Antineoplastic Combined Chemotherapy Protocols / Q000627:therapeutic use*; D018572:Disease-Free Survival; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D015470:Leukemia, Myeloid, Acute / Q000188:drug therapy*; D015473:Leukemia, Promyelocytic, Acute / Q000188:drug therapy*; D008297:Male; D008875:Middle Aged; D012074:Remission Induction