Skip to main content

Ending Specialized Follow-Up Feasible in Asymptomatic, Low-Risk Leukemia

Medically reviewed by Carmen Pope, BPharm. Last updated on April 18, 2024.

By Elana Gotkine HealthDay Reporter

THURSDAY, April 18, 2024 -- For select patients with asymptomatic, lower-risk chronic lymphocytic leukemia, ending specialized follow-up (sFU) is feasible and safe, according to a study published in the March 1 issue of Blood Advances.

Christian Brieghel, M.D., Ph.D., from Copenhagen University Hospital, Rigshospitalet in Denmark, and colleagues examined the feasibility and safety of ending sFU by assessing three-year clinical outcomes for 112 patients selected to end sFU and 88 patients selected to continue sFU.

Compared with patients continuing sFU, those who ended sFU were older, but otherwise lower-risk. The researchers found that overall survival at three years was similar in the groups (87 and 80 percent for patients ending and continuing sFU, respectively). Compared with those continuing sFU, those ending sFU had lower hospital visits per patient-year (median, 0.7 versus 4.3) and longer time to first infection; this included shorter in-hospital antimicrobial treatment (median, four versus 12 days). One in six patients were re-referred, four of whom met the International Workshop on Chronic Lymphocytic Leukemia criteria for treatment. Compared with those continuing sFU, those ending sFU had a lower three-year first treatment rate (4 versus 23 percent).

"Among patients selected to end sFU, we observed fewer hospital visits, fewer infections, and shorter duration of in-hospital infections without compromising overall survival as compared to patients who continued sFU," the authors write.

Several authors disclosed ties to the pharmaceutical industry.

Abstract/Full Text (subscription or payment may be required)

Disclaimer: Statistical data in medical articles provide general trends and do not pertain to individuals. Individual factors can vary greatly. Always seek personalized medical advice for individual healthcare decisions.

© 2024 HealthDay. All rights reserved.

Posted April 2024

Read this next

ACG: 2000 to 2022 Saw Rise in Early-Onset CRC Mortality in the United States

THURSDAY, Oct. 31, 2024 -- Early-onset colorectal cancer (EO-CRC) mortality rose in the United States over the past two decades, most notably in patients aged 20 to 44 years...

Cell-Free Blood DNA Tests Less Effective Than Other CRC Screening

WEDNESDAY, Oct. 30, 2024 -- Cell-free DNA blood tests (cf-bDNA) may be more costly and less effective for colorectal cancer (CRC) screening than other screening modalities...

American College of Surgeons, Oct. 19-22

The annual meeting of the American College of Surgeons was held this year from Oct. 19 to 22 in San Francisco and attracted participants from around the world, including...

More news resources

Subscribe to our newsletter

Whatever your topic of interest, subscribe to our newsletters to get the best of Drugs.com in your inbox.