(Healio.com) – A real-time classification protocol based on genetics and treatment response identified patients with high-risk childhood B-lymphoblastic leukemia who achieved favorable outcomes, according to multi-institutional Children’s Oncology Group (COG) study results presented at the ASH Annual Meeting and Exposition.
The protocol, thus, may identify high-risk patients who may not need further intensification of chemotherapy, according to researchers.
Elizabeth Ann Raetz, MD, professor in the division of pediatric hematology-oncology at Huntsman Cancer Institute and Primary Children’s Hospital of University of Utah, and colleagues sought to determine the feasibility of real-time classification with the COG protocol, which uses biologic, clinical and early disease response measures. Researchers used these protocol measures, which were based on cytogenetics and minimal residual disease (MRD) assessments, to evaluate outcomes of patients within National Cancer Institute (NCI) risk categories.
The analysis included data from 11,144 eligible patients enrolled on the AALL03B1 study between December 2003 and September 2011. Patients were aged 1 to 30 years at the time of B-lymphoblastic leukemia (B-ALL) diagnosis and received a three-drug induction regimen if they were NCI standard risk or a four-drug regimen if they were NCI high risk.