Busulphan versus combination chemotherapy for initial treatment of chronic granulocytic leukaemia

In a pilot study, 21 consecutive and previously untreated adults with chronic granulocytic leukaemia received either busulphan (group 1: n = 11) or a combination of the epipodophyllotoxin VP16-213 with cytosine arabinoside and doxorubicin (group 2: n = 10). Using a standardised protocol, objective response, defined as a granulocyte count consistently less than 10 X 10(9)/1 with no clinical evidence of the disease, was achieved in 45 and 40% of the patients, respectively, and median survivals were 89 and 107 weeks (p greater than 0.05). Although there was no difference in morbidity, the study was discontinued because the combination chemotherapy was more complex to administer, was associated with greater patient inconvenience, and offered no advantage over single-agent therapy in managing the stable phase of chronic granulocytic leukaemia.