Precursor B-cell acute lymphoblastic leukaemia-a global view

Abstract

As haematologists, we always seek to follow standardised guidelines for practice and apply the best treatment within our means for our patients with blood diseases. However, treatment can never follow an exact recipe. Opinions differ as to the best approach; sometimes more than one treatment approach results in identical outcomes, or treatments differ only by the manner in which they fail. Furthermore, the haematologist is faced with constraints relating to the local economic environment. Patients too are not the same the world over. Early presentation is commoner in the developed world, as is the patient's understanding of the disease process. This in turn has an impact on the way patients are managed, the rigorousness of patient adhesion to the treatment schedule and the outcome. Here we take a look at the precursor B-cell acute lymphoblastic leukaemia in an adolescent in a range of different settings from low- to high income countries with widely differing challenges for diagnosis, therpy and follow-up. For these reasons, given the same starting conditions, patients will be treated differently according to the institute and the country they are in. Experts from around the world have been tasked to describe their management plan and rationale for a specific disease presentation. Here they explore the management of precursor B-cell acute lymphoblastic leukaemia (pre-B ALL) in five different institutions worldwide with a focus on those with more or less strained economies. We end with a conclusion from an expert in the field comparing and contrasting these different management styles and considering their merits and limitations.

Keywords: blood diseases; precursor B-cell acute lymphoblastic leukaemia; treatment.