Drug helps acute myeloid leukemia patients

A French-led international study suggests acute myeloid leukemia patients treated with Vidaza (azacitidine) have significantly increased overall survival.

Acute myeloid leukemia is a cancer in which abnormal cells accumulate in 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, researchers said, noting approximately 30 percent of patients diagnosed with myelodysplastic syndrome, formerly known as preleukemia, will progress to AML.

Dr. Pierre Fenaux of the University of Paris said the results from an international phase III trial that was the first to show an increased overall survival for higher-risk MDS patients. The study showed 50 percent of the AML patients who were treated with Vidaza survived at least two years, compared with only 16 percent of patients treated with conventional regimens.

The data “¦ 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 study data were presented last week in San Francisco during the annual meeting of the American Society of Hematology.