Background: Elderly patients with acute leukemia have high mutation frequency and are often accompanied by various underlying diseases, so treatment is difficult and mortality is high.
Methods: We report an elderly acute myeloid leukemia patient with a complex karyotype who received a reduced dose of decitabine in induction chemotherapy due to a combination of severe heart disease.
Results: After a course of induction chemotherapy, the patient achieved complete cytogenetic remission. Cardiac function did not deteriorate during or after chemotherapy.
Conclusions: Dose-reduced decitabine alone can be effective and safe in the induction chemotherapy for elderly AML patients with complex karyotype.