We report the results of unrelated cord blood transplantation (CBT) for 18 adult patients with de novo acute myeloid leukemia (AML). The median age was 43 years, the median weight was 55.2 kg, and the median number of cryopreserved nucleated cells was 2.51 x 107/kg. Seventeen patients had myeloid reconstitution and the median time to more than 0.5 x 109/L absolute neutrophil count was 23 days. A self-sustained platelet count more than 50 x 109/L was achieved in 16 patients at a median time of 49 days. Acute graft-versus-host disease (GVHD) above grade II occurred in 11 of 17 evaluable patients and chronic GVHD occurred in 14 of 17 evaluable patients. Fourteen patients are alive and free of disease at between 185 and 1332 days after transplantation. The probability of disease-free survival at 2 years was 76.6%. These results suggest that adult AML patients without suitable related or unrelated bone marrow donors should be considered as candidates for CBT.