History of treatment and long-term outcome in children with acute lymphoblastic leukemia in the Czech Republic

Summary: PURPOSE: Treatment of childhood acute lymphoblastic leukemia (ALL) was unified in the year 1986 in the Czech Republic using BFM protocols. PATIENTS AND METHODS: Children were treated in 10 and later on in 8 centers localized at the pediatric departments of the biggest hospitals. More than 1.000 children and adolescents up to the age of 18 years were treated between 1986 and 2002 on three consecutive studies ALL-BFM 83, ALL-BFM 90 and ALL-BFM 95. RESULTS: Event-free survival and overall survival improved gradually from 58/62% on ALL-BFM 83 through 70.5/76.6% on ALL-BFM 90 until 72.1/80.2% on ALL-BFM 95. At the same time the incidence of toxic deaths was decreasing and the success in the achievement of complete remission was increasing. Diagnostics in the Czech Republic improved remarkably in the 1990 with gradual introduction of centralized flow cytometry and molecular genetic analysis in one reference laboratory (CLIP ≥ Childhood Leukemia Investigation Prague), which since then has become an internationally respected research center. CONCLUSIONS: Building up a network of closely collaborating leukemia centers covering the whole country, together with the establishment of reference and research laboratories has paved the way for the implementation of the Czech Pediatric Hematology Working Group (CPH) into the international studies Interfant 99, EsPhALL and for the active role in ALL IC-BFM 2002, the I-BFM-SG international randomized trial for treatment of children and adolescents with non-B ALL starting in 2002. © 2011 Springer-Verlag.