Phase II study of Gemcitabine in children with relapsed acute lymphoblastic leukemia or acute myelogenous leukemia (ADVL0022): A Children's Oncology Group report

Background. To determine the response rate and toxicity to gemcitabine administered as 10 mg/m(2)/min x 360 min weekly for 3 weeks in children with relapsed acute lymphoblastic leukemia (ALL) or acute myelogenous leukemia (AML). Gemcitabine is a deoxycytidine analog that inhibits DNA synthesis and repair and has a broad spectrum of antitumor activity. Procedure. From April 2001 to April 2003, 23 male and 9 female eligible patients were recruited for the Children's Oncology Group (COG) phase II study of Gemcitabine (ADVL0022). Results. One of 20 evaluable patients with ALL and none of 10 evaluable patients with AML had complete responses to gemcitabine; there were no partial responses. Grade 3 or 4 hematologic toxicity and liver toxicity were common during therapy. Only one patient was alive I year after entry. The estimated 1-year overall survival probability for the 32 patients was 4% (SE = 3%). Conclusions. Gemcitabine at the dose and schedule in this trial was not effective for children with relapsed AML or ALL.