ABSTRACT
On a prospective fashion during approximately two years, 22 pediatric patients with acute non lymphocytic leukemia were evaluated. Of this population the majority had acute mielocytic leukemia, followed by acute myelomonocytic leukemia. Absolutely all patients at the time of diagnosis and subsequently every 4 to 6 weeks had a bone marrow aspiration test. When the patients were first seen, 54% of them presented fever; lymph node enlargement was not a common finding. Only few of this patients presented splenomegaly and/or hepatomegaly. In regards to complete blood counts the most outstanding of its was the presence of leukocyte count above 20000/mm.3 in 8 of this patients. From the 22 patients studied only 21 are evaluable. All 21 patients were treated with a 4 drug combination (modified COAP). Sixteen patients (76%) achieved bone marrow remission, of which only 15 patients (71%) achieved complete remission. The median duration remission was of 9.2 months with a range of 2 to 26 months. At the present time only 7 patients (33%) are alive and on remission. Two more patients are alive but in full relapse. The mortality rate of this study is of 59%. The review of recent chemotherapy reports is presented and the need for further trials is emphasized especially in view of recent papers published in which it appears that better results are being obtained at last in children's acute non lymphocitic leukemia.
