These early data, from clinical studies conducted at the Fred Hutchinson Cancer Research Center and other centers, suggest that pre-transplant therapy with Mylotarg can enable patients to receive curative therapy in the form of hematopoietic stem cell transplantation. AML is among the most serious forms of adult leukemia, with a relatively high fatality rate. It is an aggressive form of cancer in which certain white blood cells become cancerous and rapidly accumulate in the bone marrow, preventing normal marrow from growing and functioning properly. Most AML patients undergo intensive chemotherapy to achieve complete remission, and some also must undergo bone marrow transplants.
Intensive chemotherapy is a real challenge for most patients.
Our study shows that if a patient achieves remission with Mylotarg and subsequently receives a hematopoietic stem cell transplant, they have an excellent chance of prolonged disease-free survival. Eleven patients received allogeneic and 11 received autologous hematopoietic stem cell transplants. A majority of patients were alive without leukemia one year after the transplant. At the time of data cutoff, the median relapse-free survival for the 22 patients was 17.4 months after transplant. This study shows us that we can offer our high-risk patients tolerable treatment that may prolong their chances of survival.