Improving Treatment Strategies in Acute Myeloid Leukemia (AML)

Treatment for acute myeloid leukemia (AML), an aggressive blood cancer that affects the bone marrow and disrupts normal blood cell production, has advanced significantly over the past decade. On this episode of CancerCast, Dr. Manish Shah speaks with Dr. Gail Roboz, Director of the Clinical and Translational Leukemia Program at Weill Cornell Medicine and NewYork-Presbyterian, about the rapid pace of progress and advancement in AML therapy. They discuss insights into new all-oral treatment regimens, targeted therapies, molecular testing to improve the detection of cancer down to one in a million leukemia cells, and efforts to minimize side effects and expand treatment options for older patients and patients who may not be able to tolerate intensive chemotherapy. Dr. Roboz helped spearhead the all-oral regimen that was recently approved by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA), which combines decitabine and cedazuridine with venetoclax. She describes these practice-changing data and explains how lessons from treating acute promyelocytic leukemia (APL) are informing strategies to develop more precise, effective, and less toxic treatments for other AML subtypes. The conversation also examines the role of stem cell transplant in helping patients achieve and maintain remission after initial treatments clear the leukemia cells from the bone marrow and restore normal blood cell production, as well as the future of AML drug development to improve outcomes for patients.

Guest: Gail Roboz, MD, Director of the Clinical and Translational Leukemia Program at Weill Cornell Medicine and NewYork-Presbyterian Hospital

Host: Manish Shah, MD, Chief of Solid Tumor Service and Director of Gastrointestinal Oncology at Weill Cornell Medicine and NewYork-Presbyterian Hospital.