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Acute myeloid leukemia

Impact of upfront chemotherapy on overall survival in isolated myeloid sarcoma

Leukemia volume 35, pages 1193–1196 (2021)Cite this article

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Myeloid sarcoma (MS) is a tumor mass consisting of myeloid blasts with or without maturation occurring at an anatomical site other than the bone marrow (BM) [1]. MS may present as de novo (isolated), may accompany peripheral blood and marrow involvement with acute myeloid leukemia (AML), or may present as relapse of AML. Isolated MS presents in younger patients with median age ranging from 36 to 48 years of age [2, 3]. Almost every site of the body can be involved with the skin, lymph nodes, and gastrointestinal tract more frequently affected [1].

Due to its rarity and lack of prospective studies, there is no consensus for the treatment of patients diagnosed with isolated MS. Patients receive local treatment with radiotherapy, surgery, or both. The National Comprehensions Cancer Network recommends that patients with isolated MS at the time of diagnosis be treated with systemic induction chemotherapy [4]. However, it is unclear whether the addition of induction chemotherapy to local therapies (radiotherapy/surgery) is associated with improved overall survival. The study of this clinical question is vital, as intensive induction chemotherapy is associated with high treatment-related mortality [5].

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Fig. 1: Overall survival of patients with isolated myeloid sarcoma according to the upfront treatment.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. UPMC Hillman Cancer Center, University of Pittsburgh, Pittsburgh, PA, USA

    Konstantinos Lontos MD, Jonathan G. Yabes PhD, Rafic J. Farah MD & Michael Boyiadzis

  2. Division of General Internal Medicine, University of Pittsburgh, Pittsburgh, PA, USA

    Jonathan G. Yabes PhD

  3. Department of Biostatistics, University of Pittsburgh, Pittsburgh, PA, USA

    Jonathan G. Yabes PhD

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  1. Konstantinos Lontos MD
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Correspondence to Michael Boyiadzis.

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Lontos, K., Yabes, J.G., Farah, R.J. et al. Impact of upfront chemotherapy on overall survival in isolated myeloid sarcoma. Leukemia 35, 1193–1196 (2021). https://doi.org/10.1038/s41375-020-01017-z

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