From the Dutch-Belgian Hemato-Oncology Cooperative Group

Purpose: The hematopoietic growth factors (HGFs) in-troduced into induction chemotherapy (CT) of acute my-eloid leukemia (AML) might be of benefit to treatment outcome by at least two mechanisms. HGFs given on days simultaneously with CT might sensitize the leukemic cells and enhance their susceptibility to CT. HGFs applied after CT might hasten hematopoietic recovery and reduce morbidity or mortality. Materials and Methods: We set out to evaluate the use of granulocyte-macrophage colony-stimulating fac-tor (GM-CSF; 5 g/kg) in a prospective randomized study of factorial design (yes or no GM-CSF during CT, and yes or no GM-CSF after CT) in patients aged 15 to 60 years (mean, 42) with newly diagnosed AML. GM-CSF was applied as follows: during CT only (+/-, n