Primacy of resistance rather than toxicity in determining outcome of therapy for AML.

Less intense therapies are currently attracting much interest in the treatment of newly-diagnosed acute myeloid leukemia (AML). Although "less intense" often goes undefined, I understand it to mean a therapy that very likely causes less treatment-related mortality than does the standard remission induction regimen of 3 days of either daunorubicin or idarubicin and 7 days of ara-C, referred to as "3 + 7." The primary appeal of less intense therapy is the potential for less toxicity. However, in this article I will make the point that for most patients, including many in their 70s if not 80s, the fundamental obstacle to curing AML is lack of efficacy not excess toxicity.