Dr. Patel on Delaying Treatment for Elderly Patients With Newly Diagnosed AML

Prapti Patel, MD, assistant professor, Department of Internal Medicine, Harold C. Simmons Comprehensive Cancer Center, UT Southwestern Medical Center, discusses delaying treatment until after genetic testing in elderly patients with newly diagnosed acute myeloid leukemia (AML).

Currently, there are limited treatment options for this patient population, says Patel. Often, these patients cannot achieve remissions with the currently available treatment options, or the therapies are too toxic.

Generally, patients with leukemia begin chemotherapy within 72 hours of diagnosis, says Patel. However, emerging evidence suggests patients may benefit from delaying therapy until after receiving genetic testing results.

The Beat AML Master Trial (NCT03013998) was designed to identify safer and more effective novel therapies for patients with AML, explains Patel. According to an analysis of elderly patients in the Beat AML Master study, it is safe to withhold treatment for 7 days while awaiting germline test results. Moreover, the patients who were treated on the trial did very well compared with those who received standard of care chemotherapy, concludes Patel.