Induction-related mortality in adolescents and young adults with acute lymphoblastic leukemia in a resource-limited setting: do treatment-related complications create more impact than disease biology?
Sergio I. Inclán-Alarcón, Santiago Riviello-Goya, Kevin Teran‐De‐la‐Sancha, Oscar Manuel Fierro-Angulo, Aldo A. Acosta‐Medina, Roberta Demichelis‐Gómez, Christianne Bourlon
Abstract
BACKGROUND: Acute lymphoblastic leukemia (ALL) is a malignant clonal bone marrow disorder with a high mortality rate during the initial therapy. This retrospective study aimed to describe and analyze the risk factors and causes of induction-related mortality (IRM) in an adolescent and adult ALL population treated in a low- and middle-income country. METHODS: From 2009 to 2016, a total of 167 patients were included, of which 50.9% were male with a median age of 28 years. B-immunophenotype represented 97.6%, and high-risk cytogenetics were present in 23.3%. During induction therapy, 91% had at least 1 complication, most of which were infectious, with an IRM of 12%. RESULTS: =0.001). CONCLUSION: Our study confirms that ALL patients treated in resource-constrained settings have high rates of IRM, mainly attributed to advanced disease and high tumor burden at diagnosis.