The epidemiological trend of acute promyelocytic leukemia over past four decades: a population-based analysis

Ziren Chena**, Wei Maib*, Zhengxiong Lic*, Haoyang Zhangd, Yu Zhenge, Shunrong Hongf, Wencong Yangg, Weiliang Xiaoh, Zhilin Cheni & Shuncong Wangj*a Department of Hematology and Oncology, Shenzhen University General Hospital, Shenzhen, China; b Department of Nephrology, The Seventh Affiliated Hospital, Sun Yat-sen University, Shenzhen, China; c Department of Intensive Care Unit, Shenzhen Longhua District Central Hospital, Shenzhen, China; d School of Biomedical Engineering, Sun Yat-sen University, Guangzhou, China; e BGI-Shenzhen, BGI Genomics, Shenzhen, China; f Department of Radiology, Puning People's Hospital, Puning, China; g Department of Cardiology, The Seventh Affiliated Hospital, Sun Yat-sen University, Shenzhen, China; h Department of Intervention, The First Affiliated Hospital of Guangzhou University of Chinese Medicine, Guangzhou, China; i Department of Ultrasound, Peking University Shenzhen Hospital, Shenzhen, China; j Theragnostic Laboratory, Department of Imaging and Pathology, Biomedical Sciences Group, KU Leuven, Leuven, Belgium* These authors contributed equally to this study.Supplemental data for this article can be accessed here.CONTACT Ziren Chen 15818745971@163.com Department of Hematology and Oncology, Shenzhen University General Hospital, Shenzhen 518055, Guangdong, China; Shuncong Wang shuncong.wang@kuleuven.be Theragnostic Laboratory, Department of Imaging and Pathology, Biomedical Sciences Group, KU Leuven, Herestraat 49, Leuven 3000, BelgiumAbstractThe treatment regimens for acute promyelocytic leukemia (APL) dramatically changed over time. However, its survival trend, based on a large sample size has not been reported. Patients diagnosed with APL were accessed from the Surveillance, Epidemiology, and End Results database. Their incidence and survival trend were evaluated in overall and subgroup levels. The overall incidence of APL increased with an annual percentage change of 5.5% from 1992 to 2006 and remained stable thereafter. In addition, the 5-year relative survival rates of APL improved significantly, from 12.3 to 32.2% to 59.5 to 72.1% over past four decades (p < .0001), sharing similar trend with different subgroups. Importantly, survival disparities exist among races and different socioeconomic status groups, with superior survival in whites and patients in low-poverty regions. Increasing incidence urges for increased awareness of clinicians over diagnosis of APL. In addition, a wider insurance coverage may help balance survival gap.