Azacitidine and Decitabine: Initial Therapies for Patients with Acute Myeloid Leukemia?

In older untreated AML patients, hypomethylating agents used first line showed promising activity.

Treatment of older patients with acute myeloid leukemia (AML) remains unsatisfactory. Survival is typically short in this population because of prevalence of poor-risk AML subtypes, poor therapeutic responses, patients' inability to tolerate standard induction chemotherapy, and presence of comorbid illnesses. Because the hypomethylating agents azacitidine and decitabine can improve outcomes and are approved for use in patients with myelodysplastic syndromes (MDS), these agents were tested in two recent trials as initial therapies for older patients with de novo AML or AML that had transformed from MDS.

One phase III study involved 113 patients (median age, 70) who had received MDS diagnoses in a previous trial of azacitidine (JW Oncol Hemato…

Reviewing Author

Michael E. Williams, MD

Disclosures

Consultant/Advisory BoardAbbVie; AstraZeneca; Beigene; Janssen; Pharmacyclics

Grant/Research SupportJanssen

Editorial BoardsAmerican Board of Internal Medicine (ABIM) Hematology Longitudinal Knowledge Approval Committee

Michael E. Williams, MD

Disclosures

Consultant/Advisory BoardAbbVie; AstraZeneca; Beigene; Janssen; Pharmacyclics

Grant/Research SupportJanssen

Editorial BoardsAmerican Board of Internal Medicine (ABIM) Hematology Longitudinal Knowledge Approval Committee