[Progress in the treatment of acute leukemias]

The most important advances achieved during the past 5 years in the diagnosis and treatment of acute leukemia are presented. It is now possible to achieve complete remission in about 60% of all patients with acute myelocytic leukemia (AML) using optimal polychemotherapy. This significant advance is in part due to improved supportive measures such as transfusions and isolation etc., which are frequently necessary during the induction phase of treatment. Unfortunately, such remissions are still of relatively short duration and seldom exceed 1 year. The treatment of relapses remains less successful. The first attempts to include immunotherapy in the treatment of AML have also been rather disappointing. Today remissions are obtained in 70% of patients with acute lymphocytic leukemia (ALL) which last, on the average, almost 1 1/2 years. These results, however, do not approach those in childhood ALL. Finally, the therapeutic possibilities for the treatment of blastic crisis in chronic myelocytic leukemia (CML) are discussed.