[Treatment of acute leukemia by differentiation: effects of all trans retinoic acid in acute promyelocytic leukemia].

All trans retinoic acid (ATRA) in the treatment of acute promyelocytic leukemia is the first model of differentiation therapy in malignancies, and represents the first strict correlation between a genetic defect and a specific treatment. In this disease the association of differentiating agents and chemotherapy gives much better results than each type of treatment (differentiating agent or chemotherapy).