Idarubicin is superior to daunorubicin in remission induction of de novo acute myeloid leukemia patients with high MDR1 expression

Abstract

Aim: To investigate whether idarubicin in a cytarabine-based induction regimen was superior to daunorubicin in de novo acute myeloid leukemia patients expressing high MDR1.

Patients & methods: The clinicopathological data were analyzed in 125 patients receiving daunorubicin or idarubicin with cytarabine for remission induction. Median MDR1 mRNA expression in pretreated bone marrow cells was used as the cutoff point for high and low MDR1 expression.

Results: A total of 59.7% high and 77.8% low MDR1 expressers achieved complete remission (CR; p = 0.029). Idarubicin yielded a higher CR rate than daunorubicin in high MDR1 expressers (82.1 vs 41.2%; p = 0.001), it also demonstrated a higher CR rate than daunorubicin (p < 0.05) in high MDR1 expressers exhibiting favorable or intermediate risk, while there was no difference between the two treatment arms in low MDR1 expressers exhibiting either favorable or intermediate risk.

Conclusion: Idarubicin is associated with better remission induction of de novo acute myeloid leukemia patients with high MDR1 expression.