For the first time, Australia has evidence-based clinical guidelines for acute myeloid leukaemia (AML). Published in February 2025, this was an unprecedented collaborative effort from the Leukaemia Foundation, the Australian federal government’s Blood Cancer Taskforce, the Haematology Society of Australia and New Zealand, as well as a group of dedicated haematologists, oncologists, and infectious disease specialists.
With our expertise, Synergy Vision designed the methodology, synthesized the evidence, engaged stakeholders, and shaped the guidelines within an internationally recognized framework. This was a heart-and-head programme – one that was truly close to our hearts, allowing us to apply both our deep commitment to oncology and our quality-first publications expertise in equal measure.
Read on for insights into the process and the guidelines themselves.1
Confronting the AML divide
The health inequities in Australia are stark, with regional centres (often the most isolated in the world) having limited access to specialist services, infectious disease expertise, and advanced diagnostic tools. By contrast, metropolitan hospitals benefit from well-resourced multidisciplinary teams. This disparity results in diagnosis delays, suboptimal infectious disease control, and inconsistent access to novel therapies, ultimately decreasing patient survival. Despite these gaps, Australia lacked a national, evidence-based guideline for AML, leaving clinicians to rely on international guidelines that do not consider the disparities in Australian healthcare infrastructure and resources. With 16 people per day in Australia expected to lose their lives to blood cancer or related disorders,2 the need for Australian AML treatment guidelines was becoming urgent.
Answering the national call to action
Improving AML care and patient outcomes became a much-needed national priority for Australia. In fact, the federal government’s Department of Health and Aged Care drafted a National Strategic Action Plan for Blood Cancer and appointed a Blood Cancer Taskforce. Under taskforce guidance, the Leukaemia Foundation, Australia’s leading blood cancer charity, partnered with Synergy Vision to deliver a key item in the action plan: the first clinical treatment guidelines for patients with AML. Our aim was clear: to improve the lives of the thousands of Australian people living with AML.
Becoming the gold standard
Being first isn’t enough; you must set the benchmark – not just to reach a standard, but to become the gold standard. That’s why we chose the most robust approach for getting this done. We began with a rigorous GRADE analysis and gathered consensus from 35 nationally recognized clinical experts using the Delphi method, ensuring that the guidelines were grounded in evidence while remaining clinically relevant.
Transforming AML care
In 6 short months, we delivered a 42-page document, in which 2,000 pieces of evidence were considered and 49 clinical recommendations reached consensus. The recommendations provide practical treatment pathways tailored to Australian clinicians, along with guidance on pharmaceutical treatment and infection management strategies, which include key access considerations such as public funding implications. These guidelines provide the urgently needed, standardized, evidence-based framework for clinical decision-making in the management of an aggressive disease with a 5-year survival rate of just 26.4%.3
Heralding a brighter future
In February 2025, the AML Guidelines were accepted by the Australian federal government’s Department of Health and Aged Care as the national standard. Together with the blood cancer community, Synergy Vision has set a new benchmark for high-quality, standardized treatment. This wasn’t just a guideline change – it’s a life-saving shift in Australian AML care. Now, that’s work worth shouting about.
Read the game-changing guidelines here.
- Haematology Society of Australia and New Zealand. Australian national AML clinical guideline advancing AML treatment. https://www.hsanz.org.au/AML-Guidelines. Published February 2025. Accessed June 2025.
- Leukaemia Foundation. Blood cancer facts and figures. https://www.leukaemia.org.au/blood-cancer/understanding-your-blood/blood-cancer-facts-and-figures/. Updated May 2024. Accessed June 2025.
- Australian Cancer Research Foundation. Acute myeloid leukaemia. https://www.acrf.com.au/support-cancer-research/types-of-cancer/acute-myeloid-leukaemia/. Accessed June 2025.