Aspects of treatment of acute myeloid leukemia in adults

The treatment of acute myeloid leukemia has made steady rather than spectacular progress in the past few years, principally because of improved supportive care. The use of hematopoietic growth factors may contribute to the speed of normal bone marrow recovery following treatment; however, their potential role as modifiers of drug pharmacokinetics may be equally valuable in overcoming drug resistance. The full range of expression of the phenomenon of resistance is being intensively explored, and therapeutic opportunities for overcoming the P-glycoprotein pump are now being introduced. Gene therapy and exciting immunologic manipulations are also developing rapidly, and the role of suppressor genes has reached a fascinating point in research and clinical applications.