title: Successful treatment of primary refractory anemia with a combination regimen of all-trans retinoic acid, calcitriol, and androgen.
abstract: We investigated the efficacy and safety of a combination regimen in 63 patients with primary refractory anemia (RA). The daily treatment protocol comprised all-trans retinoic acid (ATRA) (30 mg/m(2)), calcitriol (0.1 microg/m(2)), and androgen (stanozolol 3mg/m(2), or danazol 300 mg/m(2)) in three separate doses for eight consecutive weeks. Hematologic improvement was observed in 43 (68.3%) patients. The treatment administered was generally well tolerated, with no severe regimen-related toxicity. The overall survival rates at 3 and 5 years were 68.72% and 53.18%, respectively. These results indicate that this combination regimen is an effective and well-tolerated treatment for patients with RA.
authors.affiliation: Department of Clinical Hematology, Affiliated No. 2 Hospital, Xi'an Jiaotong University, 157 West Five Road, Xi'an 710004, PR China. alisantra0351@yahoo.com.cn
authors.forename: Wanggang
authors.initials: W
authors.lastname: Zhang
authors.forename: Fuling
authors.initials: F
authors.lastname: Zhou
authors.forename: Xinmei
authors.initials: X
authors.lastname: Cao
authors.forename: Yinxia
authors.initials: Y
authors.lastname: Cheng
authors.forename: Aili
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: He
authors.forename: Jie
authors.initials: J
authors.lastname: Liu
authors.forename: Xiaorong
authors.initials: X
authors.lastname: Ma
authors.forename: Gang
authors.initials: G
authors.lastname: Chen
mesh_terms: D000293:Adolescent; D000328:Adult; D000368:Aged; D000728:Androgens / Q000008:administration & dosage* / Q000009:adverse effects; D000753:Anemia, Refractory / Q000175:diagnosis / Q000188:drug therapy*; D002117:Calcitriol / Q000008:administration & dosage* / Q000009:adverse effects; D002648:Child; D002675:Child, Preschool; D004305:Dose-Response Relationship, Drug; D004334:Drug Administration Schedule; D004359:Drug Therapy, Combination; D064420:Drug-Related Side Effects and Adverse Reactions; D005260:Female; D005500:Follow-Up Studies; D006801:Humans; D053208:Kaplan-Meier Estimate; D008297:Male; D020714:Maximum Tolerated Dose; D008875:Middle Aged; D010865:Pilot Projects; D012189:Retrospective Studies; D015996:Survival Rate; D016896:Treatment Outcome; D014212:Tretinoin / Q000008:administration & dosage* / Q000009:adverse effects
chemical_list: D000728:Androgens; D014212:Tretinoin; D002117:Calcitriol