Steroids and risk of osteonecrosis in ALL: Take a break

摘要

The results of Leonard Mattano and colleagues' report1 in The Lancet Oncology show that introduction of scheduled breaks from dexamethasone reduces the risk of osteonecrosis in patients with acute lymphoblastic leukaemia (ALL) while high efficacy is maintained.2 The basis for the design of this unique randomised controlled trial was the results of the previous CCG-1882 study, the findings of which showed increased risk of osteonecrosis in patients given augmented post-induction treatment.