FROM JAMA

Over the 60-year span from the early 1950s to 2013, the 5-year survival rate for all leukemias increased by 500%, according to data from the Surveillance, Epidemiology, and End Results Program.

For 2008-2013, the 5-year relative survival rate for all leukemias was 60.1%, compared with 10% during 1950-1954, said Ali H. Mokdad, PhD, and his associates at the Institute for Health Metrics and Evaluation at the University of Washington, Seattle (JAMA 2017;317[4]:388-406).

Data for the various types of leukemia were not available for 1950-1954, so the changes in the 5-year survival for those included in the study are calculated from 1973-1977 to 2008-2013. Chronic lymphoid leukemia (CLL) had the highest survival rate at both time periods and the smallest increase at 23%. Acute lymphoid leukemia (ALL) had a 74% increase in survival, chronic myeloid leukemia (CML) had a 215% increase in survival, and acute myeloid leukemia (AML) had the largest increase at 342%, the investigators reported.

rfranki@frontlinemedcom.com

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