Background: Elderly patients with acute myeloid leukemia (AML) have a poorer prognosis than younger ones. Several factors contribute to the poor outcomes for this patient group.
Patients and methods: This study investigated the epidemiology, clinical characteristics, treatment, and clinical outcomes of elderly Thai patients with AML. This 3-year, prospective, multicenter study was focused on Thai patients with AML aged over 60 years who were diagnosed between 2014 and 2016.
Results: Of 680 patients with AML, 235 elderly patients with AML (34.6%) were identified, with a mean age of 70 ± 8 years. Using a 3-group cytogenetic risk classification (favorable, intermediate, and adverse risk), the proportions of patients in each category were 3.6%, 73.8%, and 22.6%, respectively. The median follow-up time for surviving patients was 846 days. The median overall survival (OS) of the patients was 128.2 days (range, 0-1205 days), with a 1-year OS of 13%. From a multivariate analysis, the significant factors associated with an improved long-term OS were patients with an Eastern Cooperative Oncology Group performance status 0 to 2 and those receiving intensive therapy.
Conclusion: Our study confirms the high prevalence of AML in elderly patients with generally poor outcomes. Selected patients with a good performance status and those who received intensive induction treatment could have a long-term survival.
Keywords: Cytogenetic risks; Induction treatment; Performance status; Senility; Thailand.
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