The two-drug regimen of daunorubicin given in conjunction with cytarabine will result in a complete response rate of approximately 65%. Some physicians opt to add a third drug, thioguanine, to this regimen, although little evidence is available to conclude that this three-drug regimen is better therapy. One study suggested that the addition of etoposide during induction therapy may improve response duration. The choice of anthracycline and the dose-intensity of anthracycline may influence the survival of patients with acute myeloid leukemia (AML). Idarubicin appeared to be more effective than daunorubicin, particularly in younger adults, although the doses of idarubicin and daunorubicin may not have been equivalent.[2,3,4,5] No significant survival difference between daunorubicin and mitoxantrone has been reported.
In patients aged 60 years and younger, outcomes for those receiving daunorubicin (90 mg/m2 /dose, total induction dosing at 270 mg/m2) were superior to those receiving more traditional dosing (45 mg/m2 /dose; total dose = 135 mg/m2). Complete remission (CR) rate was 71% versus 57% (P < .001), and median survival was 24 months versus 16 months (P = .003). No randomized comparison data between daunorubicin at 270 mg/m2 and daunorubicin at 180 mg/m2, nor between daunorubicin at 270 mg/m2 and idarubicin, are available. However, two studies examined when idarubicin (36 mg/m2) versus daunorubicin (180 mg/m2 or 240 mg/m2) were administered to elderly patients. While overall survival (OS) was not impacted by the choice of anthracycline, the percentage of long-term disease-free survivors in a mixed-cure model did appear to be impacted (hazard ratio [HR], 0.8; 0.65–0.98). The addition of the CD33-directed immunotoxin gemtuzumab ozogamicin to cytarabine plus anthracycline or clofarabine plus anthracycline in patients aged 51 to 79 years led to a small increase in median survival (25% vs. 20%; HR, 0.87; 95% confidence interval [CI], 0.76–1.00; P = < .05). In contrast, gemtuzumab did not improve the 1-year survival rate of elderly patients receiving low-dose cytarabine, although the CR rate increased from 17% to 30% (odds ratio [OR], 0.48 (0.32–0.73); P = .006).
Squamous cell carcinoma (SCC) is the second most common type of skin cancer and accounts for approximately 20% of cutaneous malignancies. Although most cancer registries do not include information on the incidence of nonmelanoma skin cancer, annual incidence estimates range from 1 million to 3.5 million cases in the United States.[1,2]
Mortality is rare from this cancer; however, the morbidity and costs associated with its treatment are considerable.
Risk Factors for...