Cell cycle characteristics: Alterable determinants of remission duration in a study of 179 standard risk newly diagnosed patients with acute myeloid leukemia

Prognostic factors were related to remission duration among 179 standard risk newly diagnosed acute myeloid leukemia (AML) patients who received identical induction and consolidation therapies. Following a bromodeoxyuridine infusion, labeling indices of bone marrow aspirate/biopsy, durations of S-phase and cell cycle (Tc) were determined. Patients with slowly cycling myeloblasts had longer remissions (Log rank p = 0.03) than those with rapidly cycling myeloblasts. Multivariate analysis demonstrated that both WBC and Tc contributed to remission duration (p = 0.01 and 0.005 respectively). Patients with slowly proliferating leukemias have longer remissions probably due to slower regrowth of leukemia between chemotherapy courses.