Dr. Ann-Kathrin Eisfeld from The Ohio State University, and her colleagues, have identified racial disparities in adolescent and young adult (AYA) Black patients with acute myeloid leukemia (AML). According to the results recently published in Blood Advances, AYA Black patients experienced a higher incidence of recurrence and lower rate of survival when compared with White patients.

The possible causes of these disparities may have been driven by delayed diagnosis and treatment, and genetic differences of the disease. “Higher death rates suggest a delay in diagnosis and treatment, calling for systemic changes to patient care,” the authors wrote in their report. Their conclusion is that the data from this study, as well as other studies, justify further studies of Black AYA patients with AML, including evaluation of alternative treatments. Additionally, they concluded that efforts should be made to collect data of social determinants of health to try to assess nonclinical reasons for poor outcomes.

Read the recent article in Hematology Advisor here.

Read the full Blood Advances publication here.

View Dr. Eisfeld’s interview featured on ABC-7 news here.

Dr. Eisfeld’s study was funded, in part, by the Leukemia Research Foundation in 2021.