[Long-term survivors of acute lymphatic leukemia in adults]

A long-term survival study was carried out in a group of 28 adult patients with acute lymphathic leukemia. The complete remission rate was 67.8%, the 50% survival rate is 21.5 months and 41 months in those with complete remissions. Six of 28 patients are long-term survivors and are living at least 5 years after diagnosis. There was a significant majority of female patients among the long-term survivors, with a female to male ratio of 4:2. The 50% survival rate of female patients (n = 11) was 42.5 months and thus considerably higher compared with the corresponding male patients (n = 17, 50% survival rate 7 months). No further clinical or hematological parameters of prognostic relevance were found as a common feature of the long-term survivor group.