Response in acute myeloid leukemia.

For many years, response to induction therapy in acute myeloid leukemia was classified as "complete response" (CR) or "no CR." The emphasis on CR reflected the proven ability of CR to extend survival, the outcome of primary interest to patients. Beginning with the adoption of complete response with incomplete platelet recovery (CRp), recent years have seen the acceptance of responses less than CR as beneficial. Although these responses denote that a drug is active, relatively little attention has been paid to the effect of such responses on survival. This article explores the effect of such responses on survival.