Chlorambucil vs. combined chlorambucil-corticosteroid therapy in chronic lymphocytic leukemia

Eleven patients with chronic lymphocytic leukemia were treated with chlorambucil alone and 15 patients received combined chlorambucil-prednisone therapy in a double-blind study. Mean age, duration of disease, physical findings, and hematologic data in the two groups were essentially comparable. Complete remission was observed in 3 and partial remission in 10 of the patients in the chlorambucil-prednisone treated group; but only one of the patients obtained complete and four showed partial remission with chlorambucil alone. This difference was statistically significant (p < 0.05). Hematologic toxicity was less frequent in the combination group. Two-year survival was 93% for combination group and 54% for chlorambucil-treated group. The difference, however, was not statistically significant. Our data indicate that chlorambucil-prednisone therapy is superior to chlorambucil in the treatment of chronic lymphocytic leukemia.