DeCure's autonomous Cancer AI scientist is researching a drug-repurposing hypothesis for acute monocytic leukemia — screening already-approved drugs against its 1-gene Open Targets disease module to publish open-access research. Research is fast; the path to publication is funded in milestone stages.
Disease moduleAcute monocytic leukemia maps to a 1-gene Open Targets module — the target space DeCure's AI scientist screens approved drugs against.
DeCure.ai methodSignature reversal (LINCS) plus network proximity (STRING) rank already-approved drugs likely to perturb this module — the same engine that produces DeCure.ai's repurposing hypotheses.
Repurposing thesisScreening approved medicines against this disease module, then publishing the evidence for the strongest candidate. Known pharmacology and human exposure data make the first question sharper — they do not establish safety or efficacy in a new indication.
Research record
01
ResearchComing soon
Candidate research + dossier — target rationale, drug-repurposing thesis and evidence pack.proof: Published dossier + on-chain hash
02
ValidationComing soon
In-vitro biological validation at a contract research org (CRO).proof: CRO contract + in-vitro report
03
Peer review & paperComing soon
Peer-reviewed paper published open-access (preprint + journal).proof: DOI + open-access link + on-chain hash
Current lead
No approved-drug candidate for acute monocytic leukemia is corroborated in the literature DeepSearch retrieved. Some conditions are managed with non-pharmacological care — a device, surgery or physical therapy — rather than a medicine; that may be the case here, or the literature we found may simply be too sparse yet to support a drug-repurposing angle.
Molecular view
neurofibromin 1 (NF1) — NF1 is one of the genes genetically linked to this disease in Open Targets — shown as context, not as a drug target we're pursuing: no approved-drug candidate for this disease is yet corroborated in the literature we found.
Loading structure…
helix sheet 1sdrag to rotate · scroll to zoom
RCSB Protein Data Bank · entry 7PGU · 3.3 Å · ligand (1S)-2-{[(2-AMINOETHOXY)(HYDROXY)PHOSPHORYL]OXY}-1-[(PALMITOYLOXY)METHYL]ETHYL STEARATE (PEV). Experimental structure, not a prediction.
What the evidence adds up to
A 2004 case report describes a 9-year-old girl with relapsed acute lymphoblastic leukaemia refractory to conventional reinduction chemotherapy who received double allogeneic peripheral blood stem cell transplantation. The first conditioning regimen used busulfan, etoposide, and melphalan; the second used total body irradiation and thiotepa. No severe regimen-related toxicity or graft-versus-host disease was observed, and the patient remained in complete remission without major complications for five years. This is a single case, not a trial, and concerns lymphoblastic leukaemia, not monocytic leukaemia.
A 1990 review stated that bone marrow transplantation had resulted in long-term survival for many patients with acute leukaemias and predicted that more specific, less toxic chemotherapy might make all acute leukaemias curable by the end of that decade. That prediction was not fulfilled. A 2021 review notes that acute leukaemias are lethal if untreated, require rapid management, and that current treatment combines chemotherapeutic agents, stem cell transplantation, and supportive care. It mentions recent research into targeted therapies but provides no specific survival or response data for acute monocytic leukaemia.
No abstract provides any data on response rates, survival, or sample sizes for acute monocytic leukaemia specifically. The 1990 and 2021 reviews are general and do not report concrete outcomes. The 2004 case is a single patient with a different leukaemia subtype.
What is still missing: prospective trials enrolling patients with acute monocytic leukaemia, validated biomarkers to stratify patients for stem cell transplantation versus chemotherapy alone, and funding for studies that report subtype-specific outcomes rather than grouping all acute leukaemias together.
Evidence
Retrieved by DeepSearch across 234,678,978 indexed works and resolved on OpenAlex — ranked by citations, including the results that did not work.
Leukemia & lymphoma/Leukemia and lymphoma · 1997 · 35 citations
Histamine and Interleukin-2 in Acute Myelogenous Leukemia
AbstractInterleukin-2 (IL-2) activates natural killer (NK)-cells to destroy leukemic blasts from patients with acute myelogenous leukemia (AML), but even aggressive regimens of IL-2 fail to prevent relapse or prolong remission time in AML. Results obtained in studies of NK-cell-mediated killing of AML blasts show that monocytes inhibit IL-2-induced lysis of AML blasts in vitro. Histamine, a biogenic amine, prevents the monocyte-derived, inhibitory signal; thereby, histamine and IL-2 synergize to induce killing of AML blasts. Here we present updated results of a post-consolidation trial in which histamine (0.5-0.7 mg s.c. bid) has been administered together with IL-2 (1 micro/kg s.c. bid) to 22 AML patients (aged 29-79, mean 59) in repeated courses of three weeks, continued until relapse or until a disease-free remission of 24 months. Low-dose therapy with cytarabine and thioguanine was given between the initial courses of histamine/IL-2. In 13 patients, treatment according to this protocol was started in first complete remission (CR1). The mean remission time in CR1 patients is 19 (median 14) months, and 9/13 remain in CR. Nine patients have entered the protocol in CR2 (n=6), CR3 (n=2), or CR4 (n=1). The mean remission time in CR2-4 is 19 (median 21) months, and 6/9 patients remain in CR. Seven out of seven evaluable patients have achieved a duration of CR which exceeds that of the foregoing remission. Histamine has been well tolerated, and 21/22 CR patients have treated themselves at home throughout the trial. We conclude that the putative benefit of histamine treatment in AML should be the focus of a randomized trial.
Journal of Microbiology Immunology and Infection · 2016 · 31 citations · open access
Clinical characteristics and outcome of invasive fungal infections in pediatric acute myeloid leukemia patients in a medical center in Taiwan
AbstractBACKGROUND: Invasive fungal infection (IFI) causes significant morbidity and mortality in patients with hematological malignancies, especially those with acute myeloid leukemia (AML), recurrent acute leukemia, high-risk acute lymphoblastic leukemia, and after allogeneic hematopoietic stem cell transplantation. The study aimed to investigate the clinical characteristics and outcome of IFIs in pediatric AML patients in a medical center in Taiwan. METHODS: We performed retrospective chart reviews. We enrolled pediatric AML patients who were admitted to National Taiwan University Hospital between January 2005 and December 2014. IFI was defined according to the European Organization for Research and Treatment of Cancer/Mycosis Study Group 2008 consensus criteria. RESULTS: In total, 78 patients were included for analysis. Twenty two episodes of IFIs were identified in 16 patients. The incidence for IFIs was 20.5% (16/78), and no specific trend of increase or decrease was observed through the study period (p=0.374). Candida species caused the majority (59.1%) of IFIs. Prolonged neutropenia and elevated alanine aminotransferase and creatinine values were factors associated with IFIs (p<0.001, p<0.001, and p=0.001, respectively). Patients with endotracheal intubation or inotropes usage had a higher probability of developing IFIs (p<0.001 and p=0.001, respectively). The overall mortality of IFIs was 53% (8/15) over 10 years, and patients with pulmonary aspergillosis had the highest mortality (80%). CONCLUSION: IFIs continue to pose significant morbidity and mortality in pediatric AML patients, and patients with other hematology-oncology cancers. Recognition of factors associated with IFIs may help us early identify IFIs and promptly initiate antifungal therapy.
Journal of Parenteral and Enteral Nutrition · 1983 · 18 citations · open access
In Vitro Study of Inline Filtration of Medications Commonly Administered to Pediatric Cancer Patients
AbstractIntravenous administration of drugs commonly used in patients with acute nonlymphocytic leukemia was simulated using a .22 micrometers air-eliminating filter. Drug concentrations were measured pre- and postfiltration using standard pediatric drug doses and concentrations. The percentage of administered dose recovered in the postfilter sample for chemotherapy drugs was adriamycin, 92%; dactinomycin, 87%; cytarabine, 96%; and vincristine, 90%. For antibiotics, the per cent recovery was carbenicillin, 90%; cephalothin, 96%; and gentamicin, 38%. Gentamicin, and perhaps other drugs evaluated, should not be administered through a filter of the type used in this study.
AbstractAbstract This report documents the principles of diagnosis and management of acute leukemia from an otolaryngologic standpoint, based on our experience with 273 patients at the Baltimore Cancer Research Center of the National Cancer Institute. Infection, hemorrhage, infiltration and chemo‐therapeutic complications are considered. The need for a high index of suspicion and an aggressive approach to these problems is stressed.
Aclarubicin in the treatment of elderly patients with acute nonlymphocytic leukemia.
AbstractThirteen previously untreated patients aged 70 and above with acute nonlymphocytic leukemia were treated with aclarubicin (ACR) alone. Among 10 cases (3, acute myelocytic leukemia; 4, acute myelomonocytic leukemia; 2, acute monocytic leukemia; and one, acute erythroleukemia) in which an evaluation was possible, 5 cases (3, acute myelomonocytic leukemia; and 2, acute monocytic leukemia) obtained complete remission (CR). The CR rate was 83% in 6 patients with acute myelomonocytic leukemia or acute monocytic leukemia. The median CR duration and survival was 7.5 and 10 + months, respectively. Although side effects of the drug on digestive system such as nausea, vomiting and anorexia were observed in all patients, they were controllable by conventional treatments. The results suggest that ACR is effective for the clinical management of elderly patients with acute nonlymphocytic leukemia, especially those with acute myelomonocytic leukemia or acute monocytic leukemia.
Pediatric Hematology and Oncology · 2004 · 1 citations
Double Allogeneic Peripheral Blood Stem Cell Transplantation in a 9-Year-Old Patient with Relapsed Acute Lymphoblastic Leukemia: Case Report
AbstractA 9-year-old female patient with relapsed leukemia that was refractory to conventional reinduction chemotherapy was successfully treated with double allogeneic peripheral blood stem cell transplantation. The conditioning regimen for the first transplantation consisted of busulfan, etoposide, and melphalan, and that for the second transplantation was total body irradiation and thiotepa. Neither severe regimen-related toxicity nor graft-versus-host disease was observed. The patient is in complete remission without major complications for 5 years. Double transplantation should be considered as one of the possible treatments for refractory acute lymphoblastic leukemia.
AbstractRecent advances have raised hope that all acute leukemias may be curable by the end of this decade. More specific and thus more effective and less toxic chemotherapy is now possible, and bone marrow transplantation has resulted in long-term survival of many patients. The authors discuss current management of acute leukemias and explain the implications of the latest research.
Medico Oncology · 2021 · 0 citations · open access
Acute leukemia and stem cell transplantation
AbstractAcute leukemias are a type of clonal proliferative malignancies that affect all ages with a predominance of ALL in children and AML in adults. Left untreated they are lethal and require rapid medical management. Not only it imposes high health risks through complications such as infections, but the treatment itself is also a source of potential risks. Acute leukemias require intense medical observation and care. Current treatment consists of a combination of chemotherapeutic agents, stem cell transplantation and supportive care. Recent research offers a better understanding of the pathogenesis of these diseases and provide an advancement in the field of targeted therapeutic agents.
Disease module: DeepOracle (Open Targets). Structures: RDKit from PubChem SMILES. Literature: retrieved by DeepSearch across 234,678,978 indexed works (targeted per-candidate search), resolved on OpenAlex.
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