title: Improved survival among older acute myeloid leukemia patients - a population-based study.
abstract: BACKGROUND
  Survival in acute myeloid leukemia (AML) has improved in younger patients over the last decade. This study was conducted to evaluate the relative survival rates in older AML patients over two decades in the US.
  
  
  METHODS
  We analyzed Surveillance, Epidemiology, and End Results (SEER) registry database to evaluate relative survival rate in older (≥ 75 years) AML population diagnosed during 1992-2009. We selected AML patients from 13 registries of SEER 18 database to compare RS during 1992-2000 and 2001-2009.
  
  
  RESULTS
  The relative survival rates improved significantly during 2001-2009 compared to 1992-2000 for all age groups and sex. For young elderly patients (75-84 years) RS increased from 13.1 ± 0.8% to 17.4 ± 0.9% at one year Z-value = 3.98, p < 0.0001 and from 2.0 ± 0.4 to 2.6 ± 0.5%, Z-value = 3.61, p < 0.0005 at five years. Similarly, for very elderly (≥ 85 years) patients RS increased from 5.3 ± 1.0% to 8.0 ± 1.0%, Z-value = 3.03, p < 0.005 at one year, but no improvement seen at five years.
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  The relative survival in elderly AML has increased significantly during 2001-2009 compared to 1992-2000.
authors.affiliation: Cancer Center and Blood Institute, St. Joseph Regional Medical Center , Lewiston, Idaho , USA.
authors.forename: Binay Kumar
authors.initials: BK
authors.lastname: Shah
authors.forename: Krishna Bilas
authors.initials: KB
authors.lastname: Ghimire
mesh_terms: D000368:Aged; D000369:Aged, 80 and over; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D015470:Leukemia, Myeloid, Acute / Q000401:mortality*; D008297:Male; D008875:Middle Aged; D018426:SEER Program; D015996:Survival Rate; D014481:United States / Q000453:epidemiology