Data presented demonstrate prolonged overall survival for patients with acute myeloid leukemiaDecember 11, 2008The Myelodysplastic Syndromes (MDS) Foundation announced today that data presented at this year's American Society of Hematology (ASH) Meeting in San Francisco demonstrate that patients with acute myeloid leukemia (AML) who were treated with VIDAZA (azacitidine) had significantly increased overall survival compared to those treated with conventional care regimens (CCR). AML is a cancer of myeloid blood cells where abnormal cells accumulate in the bone marrow and interfere with normal blood cell production. Patients with AML typically have a poor prognosis and do not respond well to conventional chemotherapy. Roughly 30 percent of patients diagnosed with MDS will progress to AML. Dr. Pierre Fenaux, of the University of Paris, presented the updated results from an international phase III trial (AZA-001) which was the first study to show an increased overall survival for higher-risk MDS patients. One-third of patients enrolled in the trial met the World Health Organization (WHO) criteria for AML. This analysis showed that 50 percent of the AML patients who were treated with VIDAZA survived at least two years, compared to only 16 percent of patients treated with CCR. "The data presented at this year's ASH Meeting are encouraging for both physicians and patients and demonstrate the major advancements that have been made in treating hematologic conditions, like MDS and AML, over the past several years," said Kathy Heptinstall, Operating Director of the Myelodysplastic Syndromes Foundation, "We are hopeful about the potential of novel therapies, like VIDAZA, which are helping patients to live longer with a better quality of life." The data presented today are a follow-up to results from the AZA-001 trial presented at the American Society of Clinical Oncology Meeting in June, which showed that patients with high-risk MDS who received VIDAZA had higher one-year survival rates in all response categories, including partial remission, stable disease and hematologic improvement, compared to those who received CCR without necessarily achieving complete remission. MDS Foundation |
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| Related Acute Myeloid Leukemia Current Events and Acute Myeloid Leukemia News Articles Cancer metabolism discovery uncovers new role of IDH1 gene mutation in brain cancer Agios Pharmaceuticals today announced that its scientists have established, for the first time, that the mutated IDH1 gene has a novel enzyme activity consistent with a cancer-causing gene, or oncogene. U of M researchers find 2 units of umbilical cord blood reduce risk of leukemia recurrence A new study from the Masonic Cancer Center, University of Minnesota shows that patients who have acute leukemia and are transplanted with two units of umbilical cord blood (UCB) have significantly reduced risk of the disease returning. First use of antibody and stem cell transplantation to successfully treat advanced leukemia For the first time, researchers at Fred Hutchinson Cancer Research Center have reported the use of a radiolabeled antibody to deliver targeted doses of radiation, followed by a stem cell transplant, to successfully treat a group of leukemia and pre-leukemia patients for whom there previously had been no other curative treatment options. Van Andel Institute Researchers Find Gene that Could Lead to New Therapies for Bone Marrow Disease Van Andel Research Institute (VARI) researchers are one step closer to finding new ways to treat Myelodysplastic Syndrome (MDS), a bone marrow disease that strikes up to 15,000 people each year in the United States, and that sometimes results in acute myeloid leukemia. Anemic Patients With MDS Gain Long-Term Benefits From Erythropoietin and Myeloid Growth Factor Hormones Myelodysplastic syndromes (MDS), a group of blood disorders that can lead to acute myeloid leukemia (AML) in some patients, often cause severe anemia (when the body lacks a sufficient number of functional red blood cells). Comprehensive look at rare leukemia finds relatively few genetic changes launch disease The most comprehensive analysis yet of the genome of childhood acute myeloid leukemia (AML) found only a few mistakes in the genetic blueprint, suggesting the cancer arises from just a handful of missteps. Stripping leukemia-initiating cells of their 'invisibility cloak' Two new studies reveal a way to increase the body's appetite for gobbling up the cancer stem cells responsible for acute myeloid leukemia (AML), a form of cancer with a particularly poor survival rate. Toronto researcher's discovery points to a new treatment avenue for acute myeloid leukemia Dr. John Dick, Senior Scientist at the Ontario Cancer Institute, the research arm of Princess Margaret Hospital, co-led a multinational team that has developed the first leukemia therapy that targets a protein, CD123, on the surface of cancer stem cells that drive acute myeloid leukemia (AML), which is an aggressive disease with a poor outcome. Novel epigenetic markers of melanoma may herald new treatments for patients Melanoma is the most serious form of skin cancer, diagnosed in more than 50,000 new patients in the United States annually. While the rate of incidences continues to rise, survival rate has not improved and the race is on to find the genetic and cellular changes driving melanoma and to devise new means of detection and treatment. Novel therapy may prove effective in treatment of 30 percent of cancers A ground-breaking Canada-wide clinical trial led by Dr. Katherine Borden, at the Institute for Research in Immunology and Cancer (IRIC) of the Université de Montréal, has shown that a common anti-viral drug, ribavirin, can be beneficial in the treatment of cancer patients. More Acute Myeloid Leukemia Current Events and Acute Myeloid Leukemia News Articles |
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