Results of chemotherapy for unselected patients with acute myeloblastic leukaemia: effect of exclusions on interpretation of results. The Toronto Leukemia Study Group

Abstract

In a study of 272 consecutive patients with acute myeloblastic leukaemia admitted to 14 general hospitals in the Toronto region the complete remission rate ranged from 43.8% to 85.3% depending on the exclusion applied. The median duration of survival for all patients was 5 months, and for those who achieved complete remission it was 16.8 months. The first 130 patients received different treatments from the other 142, with the second group showing an improved remission rate. Differences in exclusion criteria might have affected considerably the comparison of these two consecutive groups. To aid in the comparative evaluation of drug regimens the population base from which the patients are drawn must be fully described. This would help haematologists explain prognosis to unselected and unreferred patients.