Mathematical model of remission duration in acute myelogenous leukemia.

A mathematical model of disease-free survival in acute myelogenous leukemia is formulated in terms of proliferation of the leukemic stem cell compartment. A survivorship function is described which allows for the possibility that some patients may be cured of their disease and which captures the main features of experimental remission-duration curves. The model is used to investigate the effect of the amount of residual disease and the growth rate of the stem cell population on the length of remissions and the chances for cure. A method of comparing clinical trials, with potential for explanatory inference, is exemplified.