Effect of invasive aspergillosis on risk for different causes of death in older patients with acute myeloid leukaemia or high-risk myelodysplastic syndrome.

Purpose: Study objectives were to estimate the cumulative incidence of death due to different causes of death (CODs) and investigate the effect of invasive aspergillosis (IA) on each separate COD in a cohort of older patients with acute myeloid leukaemia (AML) or high-risk myelodysplastic syndrome (MDS) included in the Haemato-Oncology Foundation for Adults in the Netherlands (HOVON) 43 randomized controlled trial.

Methods: Pre-collected data from the trial was obtained from the HOVON data center and relevant clinical information was extracted. The cumulative incidence of death due to different CODs was estimated with a competing risk model and the association between each COD and prognostic factors, including IA, were investigated with a cause-specific hazard Cox regression model.