Low-dose cytarabine in acute myeloid leukaemia

A series of 20 patients with acute myeloid leukaemia received treatment with cytarabine administered as a single agent at a low dose of 10 mg/m2 every 12 hours for 14-21 days. Complete remission was achieved in six patients (30%), and partial remission in nine patients (45%). These 15 patients survived for periods from two to 15 months, and six patients were still alive at the time of writing the report. A significant reduction in the blood counts, which began seven to 14 days after initiation of the treatment, occurred in all patients who responded to therapy. The time interval from the lowest blood counts to recovery ranged from six to 21 days, and there were no treatment-related deaths. The current status of, and the future prospects for, low-dose cytarabine therapy in patients with acute myeloid leukaemia is discussed.