Key points are not available for this paper at this time.
Abstract Background First‐line treatment in patients with acute myeloid leukemia (AML) unfit for intensive therapy is the combination of a hypomethylating agent (HMA) with venetoclax (VEN). However, retrospective data confirming the benefits of this regimen outside of clinical trials have shown conflicting results. Methods We performed a multicenter retrospective analysis of outcomes with first‐line HMA–VEN versus HMA in AML patients unfit for intensive chemotherapy. Results A total of 213 patients were included from three German hospitals (125 HMA–VEN, 88 HMA). Median overall survival in the HMA–VEN cohort was 7.9 months (95% confidence interval CI, 5.1–14.7) versus 4.9 months (3.1–7.1) with HMA. After 1 year, 42% (95% CI, 33–54) and 19% (12–30) of patients were alive, respectively (hazard ratio HR for death, 0.64; 95% CI, 0.46–0.88). After adjusting for clinical and molecular baseline characteristics, treatment with HMA–VEN remained significantly associated with both prolonged survival (HR, 0.48; 95% CI, 0.29–0.77) and time to next treatment (HR, 0.63; 95% CI, 0.47–0.85). Patients who achieved recovery of peripheral blood counts had a favorable prognosis (HR for death, 0.52; 95% CI, 0.33–0.84). Discussion These data align with findings from the pivotal VIALE‐A trial and support the use of HMA–VEN in patients unfit for intensive therapy.
Acker et al. (Thu,) studied this question.