title: Acute myeloid leukemia in infants: biology and treatment.
abstract: Children aged 0-2 years (i.e., infants) with acute myeloid leukemia (AML) are a peculiar subgroup of patients in the childhood AML scenario. They present with distinctive biological and clinical characteristics, including a high prevalence of prognostically unfavorable risk factors and an increased susceptibility to therapy-related toxicity. Remarkable improvements have been achieved over the last two decades in the treatment of these patients and their outcome is becoming superimposable to that of the older age groups. In this review, we will focus on peculiarities of this young subgroup of children with AML, describing their clinical presentation, the biology of disease, and factors influencing outcome. Treatment results and toxicity data reported by major collaborative groups are also summarized and compared.
authors.affiliation: Hematology-Oncology Unit "Lalla Seràgnoli", Department of Pediatrics, University of Bologna , Bologna , Italy.
authors.forename: Riccardo
authors.initials: R
authors.lastname: Masetti
authors.affiliation: Hematology-Oncology Unit "Lalla Seràgnoli", Department of Pediatrics, University of Bologna , Bologna , Italy.
authors.forename: Francesca
authors.initials: F
authors.lastname: Vendemini
authors.affiliation: Hematology-Oncology Unit "Lalla Seràgnoli", Department of Pediatrics, University of Bologna , Bologna , Italy.
authors.forename: Daniele
authors.initials: D
authors.lastname: Zama
authors.affiliation: Hematology-Oncology Unit "Lalla Seràgnoli", Department of Pediatrics, University of Bologna , Bologna , Italy.
authors.forename: Carlotta
authors.initials: C
authors.lastname: Biagi
authors.affiliation: Hematology-Oncology Unit "Lalla Seràgnoli", Department of Pediatrics, University of Bologna , Bologna , Italy.
authors.forename: Andrea
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Pession
authors.affiliation: Department of Pediatric Hematology-Oncology, IRCCS Ospedale Bambino Gesù, University of Pavia , Pavia , Italy.
authors.forename: Franco
authors.initials: F
authors.lastname: Locatelli
keywords: acute myeloid leukemia; hematopoietic stem cell transplantation; infants; prognostic factors; toxicity; treatment results