title: Epirubicin in Childhood Acute Lymphoblastic and Myeloid Leukemia in Relapse.
abstract: Nineteen children with acute lymphoblastic leukemia (ALL) and 11 with acute non-lymphoblastic leukemia (ANLL) in first or subsequent hematological relapse, and previously exposed to high doses of anthracyclines, were treated with Epirubicin. Eleven patients (7 ANLL and 4 ALL) were treated with Epirubicin as a single drug at the dose of 30 mg/m(2)/day for 3 days a week for 1-3 weeks. 5/7 with ANLL and 0/4 with ALL achieved complete remission (C.R.). Nineteen patients (15 ALL and 4 ANLL) were treated with Epirubicin in combination with Vincristine and Prednisone or Cytosine-arabinoside, Cyclophosphamide and VP-16. 14/15 with ALL and 3/4 with ANLL achieved C.R. One patient previously treated with 750 mg/m(2) of daunornycin developed congestive heart failure (CHF) with a decrease in the cardiac ejection fraction at 11% after receiving 270 mg/m(2) of Epirubicin. No other patients developed CHF. These data are in keeping with the reports in the literature which suggest that Epirubicin is less cardiotoxic than Doxorubicin, while retaining a similar clinical activity.
authors.affiliation: a Centro di Ematologia, Clinica Pediatrica dell'Universitá di Milano, Ospedale S. Gerardo, Monza, Italy.
authors.forename: M
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Jankovic
authors.affiliation: a Centro di Ematologia, Clinica Pediatrica dell'Universitá di Milano, Ospedale S. Gerardo, Monza, Italy.
authors.forename: V
authors.initials: V
authors.lastname: Conteir
authors.affiliation: a Centro di Ematologia, Clinica Pediatrica dell'Universitá di Milano, Ospedale S. Gerardo, Monza, Italy.
authors.forename: C
authors.initials: C
authors.lastname: Uderzo
authors.affiliation: b Servizio di Policardiografia, Ospedale S. Gerarrdo, Monza, Italy.
authors.forename: M A
authors.initials: MA
authors.lastname: Galli
authors.affiliation: a Centro di Ematologia, Clinica Pediatrica dell'Universitá di Milano, Ospedale S. Gerardo, Monza, Italy.
authors.forename: L A
authors.initials: LA
authors.lastname: Malta
authors.affiliation: a Centro di Ematologia, Clinica Pediatrica dell'Universitá di Milano, Ospedale S. Gerardo, Monza, Italy.
authors.forename: G
authors.initials: G
authors.lastname: Masera
keywords: Epirubicin; children; leukemia; relapse