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Cited by 58Retinoids in leukemia and cellular processesHistorical Medical Research and TreatmentsHistory of Science and Medicine

The DOI matches its Crossref record; 40 of the 40 references it cites were found in a registry or an index.

A drug from poison: how the therapeutic effect of arsenic trioxide on acute promyelocytic leukemia was discovered

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Rao, Yi, Li, RunHong, Zhang, DaQing·2013·Science China Life Sciences
DOI 10.1007/s11427-013-4487-z
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Abstract

It is surprising that, while arsenic trioxide (ATO) is now considered as "the single most active agent in patients with acute promyelocytic leukemia (APL)", the most important discoverer remains obscure and his original papers have not been cited by a single English paper. The discovery was made during the Cultural Revolution when most Chinese scientists and doctors struggled to survive. Beginning with recipes from a countryside practitioner that were vague in applicable diseases, Zhang TingDong and colleagues proposed in the 1970s that a single chemical in the recipe is most effective and that its target is APL. More than 20 years of work by Zhang and colleagues eliminated the confusions about whether and how ATO can be used effectively. Other researchers, first in China and then in the West, followed his lead. Retrospective analysis of data from his own group proved that APL was indeed the most sensitive target. Removal of a trace amount of mercury chloride from the recipe by another group in his hospital proved that only ATO was required. Publication of Western replication in 1998 made the therapy widely accepted, though neither Western, nor Chinese authors of English papers on ATO cited Zhang's papers in the 1970s. This article focuses on the early papers of Zhang, but also suggests it worth further work to validate Chinese reports of ATO treatment of other cancers, and infers that some findings published in Chinese journals are of considerable value to patients and that doctors from other countries can benefit from the clinical experience of Chinese doctors with the largest population of patients.

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Crossref · 10.1007/s11427-013-4487-z

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Show all 40 references

Research works printed but not linked: 25

  1. Zhang T D, Zhang P F, Wang S R, et al. Preliminary clinical observations of six cases of leukemia treated by “Ailin solution” (in Chinese) 1). Med Pharm Heilongjiang, 1973, (3): 66–67
  2. Departments of Traditional Chinese Medicine and Laboratory Medicine of the First Affiliated Hospital of Harbin Medical University. Therapeutic observations of 17 cases leukemia treated with Ailin No.1 and dialectic theory (in Chinese). J Harbin Med Univ, 1974, (2): 25–30
  3. Rong F X, Zhang T D. A report on long term survival of two cases of acute granulocytic leukemia (in Chinese). J New Med Pharm, 1979, (6): 31–34
  4. Zhang T D, Rong F X. Treatment of acute granulocytic leukemia by Ailin No.1 and dialectic theory (in Chinese). Med Pharm Heilongjiang, 1979, (4): 7–11
  5. Guan J R. Leukemia: clinical analysis of 49 cases (in Chinese). Heilongjiang Med, 1958, (2): 22–34
  6. Gu D X. Preliminary observations of the therapeutic effect of the traditional Chinese medicine “55” on leukemia (in Chinese). Harbin J Trad Chin Med, 1964, 5: 24
  7. Chaoyang People’s Hospital Department of Pediatrics. Experience of using a combination of arsenic and chemotherapy to treat leukemia (in Chinese). Anti-Cancer Battle News of Liaoning (internally circulated materials, be careful in safekeeping, by the Office of Cancer Prevention and Treatment Research of Liaoning Province), 1972, (7): 23–24
  8. Hematology Group of the Department of Internal Medicine at Xiyuan Hospital of the Chinese Academy of Traditional Medicine. Treatment of leukemia by traditional Chinese medicine (in Chinese). Guangdong Med, 1974, (5): 31–37
  9. Zhou A X. Research on Qinghuang San treatment of leukemia (in Chinese). Chin J Integrat Trad West Med, 1998, 18: 582–583
  10. Department of Traditional Chinese Medicine of the First Affiliated Hospital of Harbin Medical University (Supervisor: Zhang T D. Writers: Li Y S, Hu X C. Participants: Li M X, Zhang P F, Rong F X, et al.). A clinical summary of 73 cases treated by Ailin No.1 combined with the dialectic theory (in Chinese). Chin Med Pharm Heilongjiang, 1981, (4): 28–30
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  13. Zhang T D, Li Y S. Clinical findings and experimental research of Ailin No. 1 in treating acute granuloleukemia (in Chinese). J Integrat Trad Chin West Med, 1984, 4: 19–20
  14. Zhang T D. Diagnosis and treatment of acute non-lymphatic leukemia (in Chinese). J Integrat Trad Chin West Med, 1985, 5: 713
  15. Sun H D, Ma L, Hu X C, et al. A report on 16 acute promyelocytic leukemia cases of long term survival treated by Ailin No.1 in combination with traditional Chinese dialectic theories (in Chinese). Inf Trad Chin Med Pharm, 1991, (6): 39–41
  16. Sun H D, Ma L, Hu X C, et al. Ailin I treated 32 cases of acute promyelocytic leukemia (in Chinese). Chin J Integrat Chin West Med, 1992, 12: 170–172
  17. Zhang P, Wang S Y, Hu L H, et al. “713” (As2O3) treatment of 117 cases of acute promyelocytic leukemia: clinical observations and mechanistic investigations (in Chinese). J Harbin Med Univ, 1995, 29: 243
  18. Zhang P, Wang S Y, Hu L H, et al. Treatment of 72 cases of acute promyelocytic leukemia with intravenous arsenic trioxide (in Chinese). Chin J Hematol, 1996, 17: 58–62
  19. Duan J X, Xin X M, Wang F Q, et al. Anti-cancer effect of Ailin No. 1 on leukemic cells of acute promyelocytic leukemia patients (in Chinese). Pract J Oncol, 1992, (2): 29–30
  20. Huang S L, Guo A X, Xiang Y, et al. Clinical study on the treatment of APL mainly with composite Indigo Naturalis tablets (in Chinese). Chin J Hematol, 1995, 16: 26
  21. Xu J S, Duan J M, Xu Y, et al. A case of APL survival of 20 years with treatment by Ailin I (in Chinese). Chin J Hematol, 1997, 18: 476
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  24. Li Y S, Zhang T D, Wang X R, et al. Investigation of the dynamics of Ailin No. 1 on human liver cancer cells (in Chinese). Res Cancer Prevent Treat, 1988, 15: 1–3
  25. Guo H X, Chen W, Liu L X, et al. Recent status of the effect of arsenic trioxide on colon cancer. Chin J Integr Trad West Med Dig, 2006, 14: 207–209

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Metadata

Authors
Rao, Y., Li, R., & Zhang, D.
Affiliations
Peking University (CN)
Corresponding author
Rao, Yi
ORCID
Rao, Yi
Venue
Science China Life Sciences
Publisher
Springer Science and Business Media LLC
Published
2013-05-06
Volume
56
Issue
6
Pages
495-502
ISSN
  • 1674-7305 (ISSN-L)
  • 1869-1889
DOI
10.1007/s11427-013-4487-z
OpenAlex
W2092247417
Cited by
58
References
40
Citations by year
2026: 1 · 2025: 3 · 2024: 5 · 2023: 5 · 2022: 2 · 2021: 8 · 2020: 9 · 2019: 3 · 2018: 5 · 2017: 5 · 2016: 3 · 2015: 4 · 2014: 4 · 2013: 1
FWCI
0.38
Type
journal article
Language
en
Open access
Licence
Locations
  • Science China Life Sciences (publishedVersion, cc-by)
  • PubMed (publishedVersion)
Topics
  • Life Sciences › Biochemistry, Genetics and Molecular Biology › Molecular Biology › Retinoids in leukemia and cellular processes
  • Health Sciences › Medicine › Pharmacology (medical) › Historical Medical Research and Treatments
  • Social Sciences › Arts and Humanities › History and Philosophy of Science › History of Science and Medicine
Keywords
arsenic trioxide, acute promyelocytic leukemia, history of drug discovery, traditional Chinese medicine, mercuric chloride, anticancer drug development, citation analysis, Chinese medical literature
MeSH terms
Arsenic Trioxide, Antineoplastic Agents, Arsenicals, China, Humans, Medicine, Chinese Traditional, Oxides, Remission Induction, Leukemia, Promyelocytic, Acute, Treatment Outcome, Asian People, Drug Discovery

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