AUTHOR=Xu Zheng-Li , Huang Xiao-Jun 

TITLE=Therapeutic Approaches for Acute Promyelocytic Leukaemia: Moving Towards an Orally Chemotherapy-Free Era

JOURNAL=Frontiers in Oncology

VOLUME=10

YEAR=2020

URL=https://www.frontiersin.org/journals/oncology/articles/10.3389/fonc.2020.586004

DOI=10.3389/fonc.2020.586004

ISSN=2234-943X

ABSTRACT=<p>The treatment of acute promyelocytic leukaemia (APL) has evolved dramatically over the past several decades, making the disease a highly curable form of acute leukaemia. The discoveries of all-<italic>trans</italic> retinoic acid (ATRA) and arsenic trioxide (ATO) were landmark events, leading to historic revolutions in the treatment of APL. One major change was from chemotherapy-based to chemotherapy-free treatment regimens, and the combination of ATRA plus ATO without chemotherapy has been recommended as the standard therapy for non-high-risk APL. The other major change was from the intravenous administration of medicine in the hospital to a largely home-based oral approach, which is a more cost-effective and convenient treatment model. In this review, we focus on the evolution of therapeutic approaches for APL, as well as the challenges that remain with the current approaches.</p>