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Abstract: Treatment outcomes for acute promyelocytic leukemia (APL) have improved with the widespread use of targeted therapy with all-trans retinoic acid (ATRA) and arsenic trioxide (ATO). Our study aimed to validate these data in a large patient cohort, and to redefine prognostic factors. Leveraging the HARMONY Platform, we analyzed 1438 newly diagnosed patients with APL, diagnosed between 1999 and 2022. Patient data derived from the 2 international multicenter Gruppo Italiano Malattie EMatologiche dell'Adulto (GIMEMA)-APL0406 and National Cancer Research Institute (NCRI)-AML17 trials and 4 European registries: the Haemato Oncology Foundation for Adults in the Netherlands, Belgium and Luxembourg (HOVON), AML Study Group (AMLSG), Swedish AML Registry, and Study Alliance Leukemia (SAL). The study cohort included 721 males and 717 females, with a median age of 50.5 years (range, 16-94 years). Of 1309 patients starting therapy, 562 received ATRA-ATO, and 747 idarubicin-based chemotherapy (AIDA-like CHT). Early death (ED) occurred in 85 of 1438 patients (5.9%) at a median of 9 days after APL diagnosis and was independently associated with increasing age and high Sanz risk score (odds ratio [OR], 1.06; 95% confidence interval [CI], 1.04-1.08; and OR, 4.65; 95% CI, 2.55-8.51, respectively). The median follow-up was 5.5 years (interquartile range, 3.2-7.5 years). ATRA-ATO regimen was associated with the best outcome, reaching 91% 7-year overall survival (vs 81% for AIDA-like CHT; hazard ratio [HR], 2.14; 95% CI, 1.51-3.05), 89% event-free survival (vs 71% for AIDA-like CHT; HR, 2.72; 95% CI, 2.01-3.69), and 3% relapse (vs 13% for AIDA-like CHT; HR, 4.19; 95% CI, 2.38-7.39; P < .001 for all outcomes). The survival advantage of ATRA/ATO was independent of patients' age, Sanz risk score, and treatment scenario. Our study confirms the superiority of ATRA-ATO over ATRA-chemotherapy in patients with APL. Reducing the risk of ED still represents an unmet medical need, in particular in older patients and in high-risk APL., (© 2025 American Society of Hematology. Published by Elsevier Inc. All rights are reserved, including those for text and data mining, AI training, and similar technologies.)

Given the selection of elderly patients with AML in first complete remission (CR1) the advantage of consolidation with allogeneic hematopoietic cell transplantation (HCT) over chemotherapy is still unclear. Newly diagnosed AML patients in CR1 aged 60-75 years were registered and a donor search initiated. After one consolidation cycle, patients with a matched donor were randomized to HCT with fludarabine/low-dose total body irradiation and cyclosporine/mycophenolate mofetil immunosuppression or conventional non-HCT. Primary outcome was restricted mean leukemia-free survival (RM-LFS) up to 5 years. Between 2010 and 2017, 245 patients (median age 67 years) were registered at CR1. After one consolidation, 26.9% of patients failed inclusion criteria. Of the 179 (73%) patients still on study, 75.4% had an HLA identical donor. Ten ineligible patients were excluded, and 125 randomized to HCT (N=83) or non-HCT (N=42). The primary outcome RM-LFS up to 5 years was 24.5 months (95% confidence interval [CI]: 18.9-30.1) in the HCT and 15.6 months (95% CI: 10.4-20.8) in the non-HCT arm (P=0.022) due to a decrease in cumulative relapse incidence from 91.1% (95% CI: 80.7-100.0) after non-HCT to 37.8% (95% CI: 27.2-48.4) after HCT (P<0.0001). The secondary endpoints RM-OS up to 5 years was 27.8 months (95% CI:22.3-33.2) in the HCT as compared to 28.6 months (95% CI: 22.2-35.0) in the non-HCT arm; non-relapse mortality at 5 years was 33.4% (95% CI: 23.0-43.9) with HCT and 0% without. In older patients with AML in CR1 5-year RM-LFS is better with HCT than with non-HCT consolidation treatment. The long-term RM-LFS benefit did not translate into a better RM-OS during the study period.