History of the treatment of childhood ALL: A paradigm for cancer cure
Abstract
The history of the treatment of childhood leukemia from 1950 to the present is reviewed here. Particular emphasis is placed on the 'Total Therapy' studies conducted at St Jude Children's Research Hospital in Memphis, Tennessee. Under the guidance of Donald Pinkel, MD, the first medical director of St Jude, variations in chemotherapy and craniospinal irradiation were tried, and by Study XV, begun in 2000, a 4-year event-free survival of 92+/-7% had been achieved. Strengths and weaknesses in the current treatment of childhood leukemia are discussed as well as possibilities for the future.
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ALL treatment has changed dramatically since older survivors were diagnosed, with cranial radiation therapy almost entirely replaced by chemotherapy-only protocols.
“ALL treatment has changed dramatically since these older survivors were diagnosed (Pui & Evans, 2013; Simone, 2006): due to concerns of significant neuropsychological effects (Janzen & Spiegler, 2008; Spiegler et al., 2006), cranial radiation therapy has almost entirely been replaced by chemotherapy‐only protocols (Pui & Evans, 2013; Pui et al., 2009).”
From Brain structure, working memory and response inhibition in childhood leukemia survivors (2017) · cites this paper as Simone, 2006
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- Authors
- Simone, J. V.
- Affiliations
- University of Utah (US)
- Corresponding author
- Simone, Joseph V.
- Venue
- Best Practice & Research Clinical Haematology
- Publisher
- Elsevier BV
- Published
- 2006-06
- Volume
- 19
- Issue
- 2
- Pages
- 353-359
- ISSN
- 1521-6926 (ISSN-L)
- OpenAlex
- W1976746716
- Cited by
- 60
- References
- 16
- Citations by year
- 2025: 2 · 2024: 1 · 2023: 2 · 2022: 4 · 2021: 4 · 2020: 5 · 2019: 1 · 2018: 4 · 2017: 3 · 2016: 4 · 2015: 4 · 2014: 1 · 2013: 1 · 2012: 5
- FWCI
- 4.00
- Type
- journal article
- Language
- en
- Open access
- closed
- Locations
- Best Practice & Research Clinical Haematology (publishedVersion)
- PubMed (publishedVersion)
- Topics
- Health Sciences › Medicine › Public Health, Environmental and Occupational Health › Acute Lymphoblastic Leukemia research
- Health Sciences › Medicine › Hematology › Acute Myeloid Leukemia Research
- Health Sciences › Medicine › Genetics › Chronic Lymphocytic Leukemia Research
- Keywords
- childhood acute lymphoblastic leukemia, total therapy, St. Jude Children's Research Hospital, craniospinal irradiation, chemotherapy regimens, event-free survival, pediatric oncology
- MeSH terms
- Adolescent, Child, Child, Preschool, Drug Therapy, Female, Humans, Male, Radiotherapy, Survival Rate, History, 20th Century, History, 21st Century, Precursor Cell Lymphoblastic Leukemia-Lymphoma
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