Table 2 Responses to treatment with valproic acid+all-trans retinoic acid (ATRA)+low-dose cytarabine; a summary of the results for the two acute myeloid leukemia (AML) patients achieving complete hematological remission (CR)
Patient characteristics and treatment responses | Detailed description of disease characteristics and the clinical course |
|---|---|
CR1 | Risk factor: AML secondary to previous primary myelodysplastic syndrome (MDS). |
Female, 83 years old | Status at diagnosis: performance status 1, 35% blasts in bone marrow; pancytopenia with circulating blasts < 0.5 × 109/L. |
Treatment duration: 9 months | Valproic acid level: average level first 4 weeks 353 μmol/L and during the whole treatment period 326 μmol/L. |
Response duration: 4 months Survival: 296 days | Peripheral blood cell counts: (i) platelet counts >100 × 109/L for 4 months and > 30 × 109/L for 7 months; (ii) neutrophils > 1.5 × 109/L for 4 months; and (iii) no erythrocyte transfusions for 10 months and values Hb > 11 g/dl for 4 months. |
CR2a | Risk factors: none, de novo AML. |
Male, 71 years old | Status at diagnosis: performance status 3, > 20% blast in bone marrow judged from bone biopsy, pancytopenia with circulating blasts < 0.5 × 109/L. |
Treatment duration: 7 months | Â |
Response duration: 2 months | Valproic acid level: average level first 4 weeks 419 μmol/L and during the whole treatment period 499 μmol/L. |
Survival: 383 days | Peripheral blood cell counts: (i) > 100 × 109/L for 3 months; (ii) neutrophils > 1.5 × 109/L for 2 months; (iii) Hb > 11 g/100mL for 2.5 months with transfusion independence. |