Acute Lymphoblastic Leukemia in Children

Extraordinary advances in the treatment outcome of childhood acute lymphoblastic leukemia (ALL) rank as one of the most successful stories in the history of oncology, with the current rate of approximately 80% of children being cured [1-5]. The improvements made have been mainly due to the development of intensive multiagent chemotherapy, identification of clinical and biologic variables predictive for outcome and their use in stratifying treatment, significant advances in supportive care, and development of large-scale, highly disciplined multiinstitutional national and international clinical trials [6,7]. In spite of this success, there remains place for improvement, including the development of better treatment for the minority of patients who relapse, the development of less toxic therapy, and focusing attention on screening and management of late effects that may potentially arise as a result of antileukemic treatment [8,9].