title: Outcome of patients less than 55 years of age with high-risk acute leukemia who did not have an human leukocyte antigen-identical related donor: a long-term study of 97 consecutive patients.
abstract: Between January 1993 and December 2000, an unrelated donor search (UDS) was initiated for 97 consecutive patients [46 acute lymphoblastic leukemia (ALL) and 51 acute myeloid leukemia (AML)]. Leukemia was considered to be of poor prognosis in cases of refractory disease (n=70), unfavourable karyotype (n=22) or miscellaneous (n=5). All patients had previously received various chemotherapies and 9 had undergone an autologous stem cell transplantation (SCT). The median age at UDS initiation was 25 (range 2.7-55) years. The median time to identify a suitable living donor or cord blood (CB) was 60 days. Eventually, 33 patients received unrelated allo-SCT (including 9 CB), 12 auto-SCT, 39 chemotherapy and 13 palliative treatment. At a median of 54 months, 18 patients were alive, including 15 in remission. The 4-year overall survival rates were 32%, 37%, 15% and 0% for allo-SCT, auto-SCT, chemotherapy or palliative treatment, respectively. Patients who received either allo- or auto-SCT had better survival than those who did not (P<0.0001). For ALL, only allo-SCT significantly improved survival (P<0.007). Finally, patients who received allo-SCT died less often of relapse than patients who did not (P<0.0001). Unrelated allo-SCT gives a substantial long-term survival and cure in patients with high-risk acute leukemia. For patients who achieve remission and for whom UDS fails, auto-SCT may prove to be a good approach. For patients who fail to enter into remission, intensive salvage chemotherapy has a very limited effect.
authors: Service de Maladies du Sang, CHRU, Lille, France.
authors: Jérôme
authors: J
authors: Cornillon
authors: Abir
authors: A
authors: Fawaz
authors: Stéphane
authors: S
authors: Depil
authors: Françoise
authors: F
authors: Dufosse
authors: Alain
authors: A
authors: Duhamel
authors: Francis
authors: F
authors: Bauters
authors: Pierre
authors: P
authors: Fenaux
authors: Jean-Pierre
authors: JP
authors: Jouet
authors: Ibrahim
authors: I
authors: Yakoub-Agha
mesh_terms: D000293:Adolescent; D000328:Adult; D002648:Child; D002675:Child, Preschool; D005260:Female; D006680:HLA Antigens / Q000737:chemistry*; D006650:Histocompatibility Testing; D006801:Humans; D007223:Infant; D015470:Leukemia, Myeloid, Acute / Q000401:mortality / Q000628:therapy*; D008297:Male; D008875:Middle Aged; D054198:Precursor Cell Lymphoblastic Leukemia-Lymphoma / Q000401:mortality / Q000628:therapy*; D033581:Stem Cell Transplantation / Q000379:methods*; D014182:Transplantation, Autologous / Q000379:methods; D016896:Treatment Outcome
chemical_list: D006680:HLA Antigens