Azacitidine and Venetoclax Treatment in Acute Myeloid Leukemia: Real-Life Experience

Özlem Beyler , Nida Akgül , Hülya Yılmaz Tekinhatun , ALİ DOĞAN, Cengiz Demir

  • Özlem Beyler: Health Sciences University, Diyarbakır Gazi Yaşargil Trainning and Research Hospital
  • Nida Akgül: VAN 100. YIL ÜNİVERSİTESİ
  • Hülya Yılmaz Tekinhatun: Health Sciences University, Diyarbakır Gazi Yaşargil Trainning and Research Hospital
  • ALİ DOĞAN: VAN YÜZÜNCÜ YIL ÜNİVERSİTESİ
  • Cengiz Demir: Health Sciences University, Diyarbakır Gazi Yaşargil Trainning and Research Hospital
  • Year : 2025
  • Vol : 41
  • Issue : 4
  •  Page : 217-221
Objective: This study evaluated the real-world efficacy, safety, and survival outcomes of azacitidine-venetoclax (AZA-VEN) therapy in newly diagnosed acute myeloid leukemia (AML) patients ineligible for intensive chemotherapy.
Materials and Methods: A retrospective analysis was conducted on 36 AML patients treated at two centers between 2022–2025. Data included demographics, treatment cycles, dose adjustments, response rates (complete remission, partial remission, refractory disease), hematologic recovery, side effects, and overall survival.
Results: The median age was 66 years (range: 27–98), with 61.1% achieving CR. Median OS (Overall Survival) was 22 months (95% CI: 13.1–30.9), significantly longer in patients receiving ≥3 cycles (23.7 vs. 6.4 months; p=0.031) and those with early neutrophil recovery (>1000/μL by day 7: 29.4 vs. 13.7 months; p=0.009). Grade 3 toxicity (33.3% of patients) correlated with poorer survival (6.4 vs. 22 months for Grade 2; p=0.006). No invasive fungal infections occurred.
Conclusion: AZA–VEN is effective and safe in chemotherapy-ineligible AML, providing survival outcomes that are comparable to, and in some aspects even consistent with, those observed in pivotal clinical trials. Our findings indicate that extended therapy, especially in patients who were able to continue for three or more cycles, was associated with a meaningful improvement in overall survival, thereby emphasizing the importance of maintaining treatment continuity whenever possible. The complete absence of invasive fungal infections in our cohort, in contrast to the variable rates reported in previous studies, suggests that our prophylaxis strategy may have contributed positively and could be of clinical relevance. In addition, the female survival advantage observed in our study, while noteworthy, should be interpreted with caution, considered as hypothesis-generating, and further validated in larger, well-designed studies.
Cite this Article As : Beyler O, Akgul N, Yilmaz Tekinhatun H, Dogan A, Demir C. Azacitidine and Venetoclax Treatment in Acute Myeloid Leukemia: Real-Life Experience. Selcuk Med J 2025;41(4): 217-221

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Conflict of interest : The authors declare that they have no conflict of interest.
This article is published under the CC BY-NC 4.0 license.
Selcuk Medical Journal
2025, Vol. 41 (4)
ISSN: 1017-6616
E-ISSN: 2149-8059
Received : , Accepted : , Published Online :

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