Treatment of pediatric acute lymphoblastic leukemia

Abstract

Acute lymphoblastic leukemia (ALL) is the most common pediatric oncologic diagnosis, and advances in its treatment have led to progressive improvements in survival. The 4 main components of therapy are remission induction, consolidation, maintenance, and central nervous system-directed therapy, and usually last 2 to 3 years. Treatment intensity based on risk-based stratification is the cornerstone of treatment. Patients with features of more favorable disease are spared the more toxic effects of chemotherapy, whereas more aggressive regimens are reserved for those with higher-risk disease. Prognosis of relapsed pediatric ALL depends primarily on duration of remission and site of relapse.

Keywords: Acute lymphoblastic leukemia; Leukemia treatment; Risk-based stratification.

Copyright © 2015 Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

Figures

Fig. 1

Improved overall survival in childhood acute lymphoblastic leukemia (ALL). (From Hunger SP, Winick NJ, Sather HN et al. Therapy of low-risk subsets of childhood acute lymphoblastic leukemia: when do we say enough? Pediatr Blood Cancer 2005;45(7):876–80; with permission.)