Extending chemo slashes risk of aggressive childhood leukemia coming back

Many children with acute lymphoblastic leukemia (ALL) have a good outcome of their disease. After two years of chemotherapy treatment, 9 out of 10 children are cured. But some children have a more aggressive form of the disease. For example, children with a so-called Ikaros change in the DNA of their leukemia cells have a greater risk of their disease coming back after treatment. In order to improve the chances of survival and quality of life of all children with leukemia, the treatment protocol has been continuously adapted over the years, based on the latest scientific insights.