The cure rate for the once almost universally fatal childhood cancer acute lymphoblastic leukemia (ALL) could reach 90 percent in the near future, thanks to improvements in diagnosis and treatment over the past four decades, according to investigators at St. Jude Children's Research Hospital. Almost 4,000 cases of ALL are diagnosed in the United States each year, about two-thirds of which are in children and adolescents, making this disease the most common cancer in this age group.

A report on the progress in the treatment of ALL authored by two St. Jude investigators appears in the January 12 issue of the New England Journal of Medicine.

The progressive improvement in the cure rate since 1962, when only 4 percent of children with ALL survived, reflects in large part the more effective use of existing drugs and the incorporation of sophisticated genetic technologies to personalize treatments, the authors said. Research findings at St. Jude have enabled clinicians to identify patients for whom standard treatment is most likely to fail, and who should therefore be treated more aggressively; these findings have also allowed clinicians to choose the optimal drugs and drug dosages for individual patients.

The improvements in ALL treatment are also helping to reduce the long-term toxic side effects of therapy by enabling clinicians to reduce or avoid the use of certain drugs or radiation that can damage major organs or cause secondary cancers.

"Our success reflects many years of dedication and research by an experienced team that have paid off substantially," said Ching-Hon Pui, M.D., director of the Leukemia/Lymphoma Division at St. Jude and American Cancer Society F.M. Kirby Clinical Research Professor. "A 90 percent cure rate for ALL is quite possible in the near future if we continue to incorporate the breakthroughs of past decades and successfully overcome the remaining challenges."

The dramatic increase in cure rates for children
'"/>

Contact: Bonnie Kourvelas
bonnie.kourvelas@stjude.org
901-495-3306
St. Jude Children's Research Hospital
11-Jan-2006

Page: 1 2 3 4 5
Related medicine news :

1. New family health history projects focus on Alaska Native, Appalachian communities
2. Minister Dosanjh announces over $2.8 million for childhood obesity health research projects
3. Stomach cancer rate set to fall further 25 percent over next decade
4. Sleep apnea increases risk of heart attack or death by 30 percent
5. Childhood immunization against pneumonia cuts hospital admissions by almost 40 percent
6. Hospital errors rise 3 percent -- HealthGrades patient-safety study
7. Chronic pain up almost 40 percent among US workers in past decade
8. Annual study finds top hospitals have 28 percent lower mortality rate
9. 100 percent juices found as beneficial to health as fruits and vegetables
10. UGA study finds that caffeine cuts post-workout pain by nearly 50 percent
11. Pakistani women 30 percent more likely to be blind than men