In this video, acute myeloid leukemia (AML) expert Dr. Jamile Shammo discusses treatment challenges that elderly AML patients may often face. Older patients often have co-morbid conditions such as kidney or heart disease and are more vulnerable to AML than younger patients. Tolerability to induction chemotherapy may be less among elderly patients than younger patients. Some chemotherapeutic agents such as anthracyclines may present with cardiac toxicity in patients with heart disease. Elderly patients may have challenges due to both AML and MDS cytogenetic abnormalities. Elderly patients may have resistance to chemotherapy and experience adverse drug tolerability and may also be more vulnerable to infectious complications. Combination therapy such as azacitidine and venetoclax are given to elderly patients because of better tolerability and response rates to treatment in AML.

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