Four hundred thirty patients with high-risk acute lymphoid leukemia were entered on the acute leukemia in childhood protocol (AlinC 12) of the Pediatric Division of the Southwest Oncology Group (now the Pediatric Oncology Group) between 1976 and 1979. This study was a prospective randomized comparison of two regimens that had as their primary differences: (1) an intensification period with Cytoxan (cyclophosphamide) and asparaginase after induction; (2) a period of intravenous methotrexate before initiating maintenance; and (3) in the regimen that had those two additions, triple-drug chemoprophylaxis of the central nervous system (CNS) using methotrexate, hydrocortisone, and cytosine arabinoside as compared to cranial irradiation and intrathecal methotrexate. All patients received vincristine and prednisone induction, 6-mercaptopurine and methotrexate maintenance, and vincristine and prednisone pulse intensification. There was no significant difference in the rate of bone marrow relapse. However, overall diseasefree survival favored the arm with intensification and chemoprophylaxis because of a lesser incidence of extramedullary relapse. Thus, for treatment 1 versus treatment 3 the two-sided P values were for overall disease-free survival 0.16; bone marrow relapses 0.13; all CNS relapses 0.04; and all extramedullary disease relapses 0.013. It is concluded that intensification as delivered in this protocol protects against testicular relapse and that chemoprophylaxis is adequate prophylaxis against isolated CNS relapse.
Cancer 63:23-29, 1989.
N 1976, the Pediatric Division of the Southwest Oncology I Group, later reorganized as the Pediatric Oncology
Group, initiated a study, designated AlinC 12. Enrollment w,as from 1976 through 1979. The objective of this study w<as to compare, for patients with higher than average risk, two regimens that both were then accepted approaches to acute lymphocytic leukemia (ALL) treatment in children. One was patterned after St. Jude's regimen 04, designated as Total V and VII,' and the other after a University of Texas M. D. Anderson-generated regimen cded All-out #2.* The regimens had as their primary difference the following: (1) an intensification period after