{"entity":{"id":"paper-esphall-imatinib-biondi-lancet-oncol-2012","kind":"paper","name":"EsPhALL: imatinib after induction for children and adolescents with Philadelphia chromosome-positive acute lymphoblastic leukaemia","aka":[],"tldr":"In this European trial, adding intermittent imatinib to intensive chemotherapy for childhood Philadelphia-positive leukaemia improved disease-free survival in good-risk patients and supported its use in every child with the disease.","summary":"European intergroup study of 178 children with Ph-positive ALL; 108 good-risk patients were randomised to imatinib or no imatinib in addition to BFM-type chemotherapy, and poor-risk patients all received imatinib; most underwent transplant.\n\nFour-year disease-free survival was 72.9 percent with imatinib against 61.7 percent without in good-risk patients (not statistically significant by intention to treat but significant as treated), and toxicity was acceptable.","asOf":"2026-09-17","links":[{"label":"Lancet Oncol 2012","url":"https://doi.org/10.1016/S1470-2045(12)70377-7"},{"label":"PubMed","url":"https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/22898679/"}],"tags":[],"related":[],"cancers":["all-paediatric-ph-positive"],"sections":[],"technologies":[],"targets":[],"drugs":["imatinib"],"companies":[],"institutions":[],"pathways":[],"terms":[],"trials":[],"people":[],"bottlenecks":[],"keyPapers":[],"journals":["lancet-oncology"],"dependsOn":[],"notes":[],"journal":"The Lancet Oncology","year":2012,"doi":"10.1016/S1470-2045(12)70377-7","pmid":"22898679","authors":"Biondi A, Schrappe M, De Lorenzo P, et al.","paperType":"rct","findings":["Four-year disease-free survival 72.9 percent vs 61.7 percent in good-risk patients.","Poor-risk patients on imatinib: four-year disease-free survival 53.5 percent."],"whatItMeans":"Together with AALL0031, EsPhALL established kinase inhibitor plus chemotherapy as standard for paediatric Ph-positive ALL, with later trials giving imatinib continuously and reducing transplant.","caveats":["Randomisation was stopped early after AALL0031 results; intention-to-treat difference not significant.","Intermittent imatinib schedule was later replaced by continuous dosing."],"changedPractice":true,"participants":178},"route":"/key-papers/paper-esphall-imatinib-biondi-lancet-oncol-2012/","neighbours":{"cancer":[{"id":"all-paediatric-ph-positive","kind":"cancer","name":"Philadelphia chromosome-positive acute lymphoblastic leukaemia in children (Ph-positive ALL)","route":"/cancers/all-paediatric-ph-positive/"}],"drug":[{"id":"imatinib","kind":"drug","name":"Imatinib","route":"/drugs/imatinib/"}],"journal":[{"id":"lancet-oncology","kind":"journal","name":"The Lancet Oncology","route":"/journals/lancet-oncology/"}]}}