Acute myelogenous leukaemia following cytotoxic therapy: five cases and a review

Acute myelogenous leukaemia (AML) following cytotoxic chemotherapy has been reported increasingly. Five new cases are presented including the first described following treatment for immune thrombocytopaenia. A review of the literature has revealed 226 case reports of treatment-linked AML with sufficient detail to permit further study. Of the total of 231 patients, 76 (33 per cent) followed Hodgkin's disease, 59 (25.5 per cent) multiple myeloma, 22 (9.5 per cent) non-Hodgkin's lymphoma, 32 (14 per cent) other solid tumours and 42 (18 per cent) non-malignant diseases. The time interval from the start of chemotherapy to the diagnosis of AML was similar in all disease groups whether the patients had received radiotherapy or not. Differences emerged when the duration of exposure to chemotherapy was analysed in the individual disease groups; exposure was shorter in those patients treated for Hodgkin's disease and solid tumours than with the others suggesting that the pattern of administration of chemotherapy may be important. The effects of radiotherapy in addition to chemotherapy could not be defined precisely, but the study highlights the particular risk that appears to arise from alkylating agents, and the need to define optimal methods of administration of chemotherapy with minimal risk of inducing leukaemia.