cancers-logo

Journal Browser

Journal Browser

Evolving Paradigms in Acute Myeloid Leukemia: From Molecular Risk to Targeted Treatment

A special issue of Cancers (ISSN 2072-6694).

Deadline for manuscript submissions: 31 October 2026 | Viewed by 924

Editor


E-Mail Website
Guest Editor
Division of Hematology-Oncology, Mayo Clinic, Jacksonville, FL, USA
Interests: ALL; AML; DDX41 mutated GPS; TP53 mutated myeloid neoplasm; therapy-related clonal hematopoisi
Special Issues, Collections and Topics in MDPI journals

Special Issue Information

Dear Colleagues,

Acute myeloid leukemia (AML) treatment has changed dramatically over the past decade, shifting from a framework based mainly on age, fitness, and cytogenetics to one increasingly guided by disease biology, molecular drivers, treatment response, and measurable residual disease (MRD). Among the most important advances has been the development of targeted therapies, including menin inhibitors for genetically defined AML subsets such as KMT2A-rearranged and NPM1-mutated disease. These agents are showing promising activity and are raising key questions about how best to integrate them into frontline and relapsed/refractory treatment strategies, how resistance develops, and how molecular monitoring should guide their use. At the same time, venetoclax-based regimens—initially developed for older or unfit patients—are increasingly being explored in broader AML populations, challenging the traditional dominance of intensive chemotherapy. Parallel to these therapeutic advances, MRD is emerging as a critical biomarker for response assessment, relapse prediction, and post-remission decision-making, including transplant planning. This Special Issue of Cancers will highlight these major developments through original research, translational studies, and comprehensive reviews that examine how precision medicine is reshaping AML treatment and future care strategies.

Dr. Talha Badar
Guest Editor

Manuscript Submission Information

Manuscripts should be submitted online at www.mdpi.com by registering and logging in to this website. Once you are registered, click here to go to the submission form. Manuscripts can be submitted until the deadline. All submissions that pass pre-check are peer-reviewed. Accepted papers will be published continuously in the journal (as soon as accepted) and will be listed together on the special issue website. Research articles, review articles as well as communications are invited. For planned papers, a title and short abstract (about 250 words) can be sent to the Editorial Office for assessment.

Submitted manuscripts should not have been published previously, nor be under consideration for publication elsewhere (except conference proceedings papers). All manuscripts are thoroughly refereed through a single-anonymized peer-review process. A guide for authors and other relevant information for submission of manuscripts is available on the Instructions for Authors page. Cancers is an international peer-reviewed open access semimonthly journal published by MDPI.

Please visit the Instructions for Authors page before submitting a manuscript. The Article Processing Charge (APC) for publication in this open access journal is 2900 CHF (Swiss Francs). Submitted papers should be well formatted and use good English. Authors may use MDPI's English editing service prior to publication or during author revisions.

Keywords

  • acute myeloid leukemia
  • targeted therapy
  • precision medicine
  • menin inhibitors
  • venetoclax
  • measurable residual disease (MRD)
  • risk stratification
  • allogeneic hematopoietic cell transplantation
  • molecular profiling
  • AML consolidation therapy

Benefits of Publishing in a Special Issue

  • Ease of navigation: Grouping papers by topic helps scholars navigate broad scope journals more efficiently.
  • Greater discoverability: Special Issues support the reach and impact of scientific research. Articles in Special Issues are more discoverable and cited more frequently.
  • Expansion of research network: Special Issues facilitate connections among authors, fostering scientific collaborations.
  • External promotion: Articles in Special Issues are often promoted through the journal's social media, increasing their visibility.
  • Reprint: MDPI Books provides the opportunity to republish successful Special Issues in book format, both online and in print.

Further information on MDPI's Special Issue policies can be found here.

Published Papers (1 paper)

Order results
Result details
Select all
Export citation of selected articles as:

Review

19 pages, 773 KB  
Review
Modern Concepts in Precision Targeting of Acute Myeloid Leukemia Based on Principles of Molecular Oncology
by Robert Yuan, Melissa Mariano, David Cachia, Talha Badar and Shyam A. Patel
Cancers 2026, 18(14), 2329; https://doi.org/10.3390/cancers18142329 - 19 Jul 2026
Viewed by 396
Abstract
Acute myeloid leukemia (AML) pathogenesis is deeply rooted in the concept of clonal evolution, in which hematopoietic stem cells experience an initial genetic insult, followed by the sequential acquisition of mutations leading to various disease phenotypes. Through natural selection, a malignant clone can [...] Read more.
Acute myeloid leukemia (AML) pathogenesis is deeply rooted in the concept of clonal evolution, in which hematopoietic stem cells experience an initial genetic insult, followed by the sequential acquisition of mutations leading to various disease phenotypes. Through natural selection, a malignant clone can diversify and propagate with time. Aside from clonal evolution, a number of time-honored principles of molecular oncology account for the initiation and maintenance of AML. These principles include loss of heterozygosity, genomic instability, epigenomic disruption, deregulation of signaling pathways, anti-apoptotic mechanisms, and oncogene addiction. Such tenets of cancer biology not only explain AML cellular behavior but also may inform target validation in AML. Herein, we highlight the current state of targeted therapeutics, including the 14 novel agents (beyond 7+3 chemotherapy) approved by the Food and Drug Administration, in the context of these tenets and discuss future prospects by leveraging current knowledge of AML genomics. Such therapeutic concepts, including synthetic lethality, are especially relevant to TP53-mutant AML, as there are no unique therapies that have received regulatory approval for this subset to date. We emphasize the emerging role of single-cell genomics and multi-omics toward better understanding of AML biology and development of future successful AML therapies. Full article
Show Figures

Figure 1

Back to TopTop