An exemplar population-based study to predict up-take of non-intensive therapies in acute myeloid leukaemia

Recent advances in non-intensive therapy (non-IC) have demonstrated the potential for improved outcomes in patients with non-promyelocytic acute myeloid leukaemia (AML) unsuitable for intensive chemotherapy [1]. These data are mainly derived from clinical trial participants and therefore numbers of unselected patients that could benefit from novel agents are unknown. Identifying factors that influence treatment decisions in unselected patients would be useful to predict up-take of non-IC. A previous study on Medicare beneficiaries has identified variables influencing intensive treatment in older AML patients, but not the reasons for favouring SC over non-IC [2]. As the use of non-IC in patients increases [3], predicting the size of the target population for non-IC, identifying barriers to therapy and the determinants of survival in ‘real-world’ patients will help budgetary planning and patient outcomes. In the absence of a national registry of AML patients in the United Kingdom, through this retrospective study, we aimed to identify the proportion of AML patients that receives non-IC in our catchment population of 450,000, and factors affecting treatment and survival.