Outcomes of patients with Acute Myeloid Leukemia receiving venetoclax in combination with azacitidine: A single center retrospective study from Pakistan.

Introduction: Acute Myeloid Leukemia (AML) has a peak incidence in elderly patients with the median age of onset being 68 years. Owing to the advanced age and multiple comorbidities, such patients are not candidates for the standard chemotherapeutic protocols. Here we discuss the treatment strategies employed for newly diagnosed elderly patients with AML at our institution and their associated outcomes.

Materials and methods: We conducted a single institutional retrospective review of cases which included elderly patients aged ≥ 50 years diagnosed with AML and treated with venetolcax in combination with azacitidine. Data relating to patients' characteristics, cytogenetics, molecular aberrations and vital status were extracted. We evaluated the overall survival (OS) as our primary outcome of interest.

Results: This study involved 58 patients with confirmed AML, with a median age of 61.5 years. The majority of patients were male (77.6%). Most patients (75.9%) died, while 15.5% were still under treatment at the end of the study period. The median OS was 7.0 months. There was no significant difference in survival based on comorbid conditions (p = 0.586). However, survival differed by gender, with a median OS of 6 months for males and 16 months for females (p = 0.021). The number of chemotherapy cycles significantly impacted survival, with increased cycles associated with a reduced hazard of death (HR = 0.74, p < 0.01).

Conclusion: Our findings contribute to the growing evidence that venetoclax combined with azacitidine is an effective treatment option for elderly patients with AML who are not eligible for intensive treatment.