Autologous bone marrow transplantation (ABMT) in acute myelogenous leukaemia--Heidelberg experience.

Thirty-seven patients with acute myelogenous leukaemia, 17 in the first clinical remission (CR; low risk) and 20 in the second or subsequent CR (high risk), underwent total body irradiation (12.1-16.7 GY) and cyclophosphamide treatment (200 mg/kg), followed by autologous bone marrow transplantation. The autograft was incubated with the active cyclophosphamide derivative mafosfamide to reduce the number of possible contaminating clonogenic tumour cells. The transplant related death rate was low (8.1%). The probability of disease free survival after marrow transplantation in the first CR was 62% compared to 28% in the second or subsequent CR at a median follow up to 22 months. The survival plateau of low risk patients after transplantation seems to be stable with no relapses occurring more than one year later, whereas three late relapses were seen in high risk patients.