Short term therapy (STT) for acute myelogenous leukaemia (AML).

Between 1978 and 1988 (median follow up 51/2 years), 396 newly diagnosed adults with AML (age range 14-59 years, median 44) received STT comprising daily Adriamycin : 25 mg/m 2 for 3 days, Cytosine arabionoside (ara-C) : 100 mg/m 2 bd and 6-thioguanine : 100 mg/m 2 bd, each for 7 days. A maximum of 6 cycles was administered with as short an intercycle time as possible. No further treatment was given. Complete remission (CR) was achieved in 243/396 patients (62%), 71 patients (18%) having resistant leukaemia and 82 (21%) dying within 6 weeks. Antecedent myelodysplasia and advanced age correlated unfavourably with achievement of CR (p=<0.001 and 0.005 respectively)