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1.
Outcomes of toxoplasmosis after allogeneic hematopoietic stem cell transplantation and the role of antimicrobial prophylaxis
Malek, A. E., Al-Juhaishi, T., Milton, D. R., Ramdial, J. L., Daher, M., Olson, A. L., Srour, S. A., Alatrash, G., Oran, B., Mehta, R. S., et al
Bone marrow transplantation. 2024
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2.
Incidence and Risk Factors of Early Onset VOD/SOS Differ in Younger vs Older Adults After Stem Cell Transplantation
Marcoux, C., Saliba, R. M., Wallis, W., Khazal, S. J., Ragoonanan, D., Rondon, G., Tewari, P., Popat, U. R., Oran, B., Olson, A. L., et al
Blood advances. 2024
Abstract
Veno-occlusive disease (VOD) is a rare but potentially life-threatening complication following allogeneic hematopoietic stem cell transplantation (allo-SCT). While increasing awareness and modern transplant techniques have mitigated risk, the interaction of historic risk factors in the current era with post-transplant cyclophosphamide (PTCy) is unknown. We performed a retrospective single center analysis of adult patients 18 years or older undergoing allo-SCT (N=1561) using predominately PTCy as GVHD prophylaxis (72%). We found a higher rate of VOD at 16.8% (20/119) in those aged ≤ 25 years compared to 3.8% (55/1442) in those >25 years, with unique predictors of VOD within each cohort. Multivariate classification and regression tree (CART) analysis confirmed age as the primary independent determinant of the rate of VOD. Within patients aged 18-25 years, disease risk index (DRI) (31% with high/very high DRI vs 12% low/intermediate DRI; p=0.03) and prior lines of chemotherapy (24% with >1 vs 6% with ≤1, p=0.03) were the strongest predictors of VOD. Incidence of VOD in patients > 25 years of age consistently ranged between 3-5% across most risk factors evaluated, with only hepatic factors (baseline elevation of bilirubin, aspartate transferase (AST), alanine aminotransferase (ALT)) or gemtuzumab exposure associated with increased rates of VOD. There was no significant difference in rates of VOD in those receiving PTCy compared to those receiving alternate GVHD prophylaxis. Our data highlight the differences in incidence and predictors in VOD between younger (≤25) and older (>25) adults undergoing allo-SCT.
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3.
Myeloablative Fractionated Busulfan for Allogeneic Stem Cell Transplant in Older Patients or Patients with Comorbidities
Popat, U. R., Pasvolsky, O., Bassett, R., Mehta, R. S., Olson, A. L., Chen, J., Alousi, A. M., Al-Atrash, G., Bashir, Q., Gulbis, A. M., et al
Blood advances. 2023
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Editor's Choice
Abstract
Traditional conditioning regimens for patients undergoing allogeneic hematopoietic stem cell transplantation (alloHCT) provide suboptimal outcomes, especially for older patients and those with comorbidities. We hypothesized that a fractionated myeloablative busulfan dose delivered over an extended period would reduce non-relapse mortality (NRM), while retaining anti-leukemic effects. Here, we performed a phase II trial for adults with hematological malignancies receiving matched related or unrelated alloHCT. Participants received busulfan 80mg/m2 outpatient on days -20 and -13 before transplant. Fludarabine 40mg/m2 was given on days -6 to -2 followed by busulfan dosed to achieve a target area under the curve of 20,000mol/min for the whole course. The primary endpoint was day 100 NRM. Seventy-eight patients were included, with a median age of 61 (range 39-70) years, transplanted for acute leukemia (24%), MDS (27%), or MPD/CML (44%). HCT specific comorbidity index (HCT-CI) was >3 in 34 (44%). With a median follow-up of 36.4 (range 2.9-51.5) months, 100-day, 1-year and 3-year NRM was 3.8% (95%CI, 0-8.1%), 8% (95%CI, 2-14%), and 9.3% (95%CI, 2.6-15.9%), without a significant difference by age or HCT-CI score. One-year and 3-year relapse incidence was 10% (95%CI, 4-17%) and 18% (95%CI, 9-27%), respectively. Three-year overall survival was 80% (95%CI, 72-90%) and was similar for patients >60 and <60 years of age, as well as those with HCT-CI>3 and HCT-CI<3. Overall, we found that a myeloablative fractionated busulfan regimen has low NRM without an increase in relapse rate, resulting in promising survival, even in older patients or in patients with comorbidities.
PICO Summary
Population
Adults with haematological malignancies receiving matched related or unrelated allogeneic transplant, from a single centre in USA (n=78).
Intervention
Busulfan 80mg/m2 outpatient on days -20 and -13 before transplant, fludarabine 40mg/m2 on days -6 to -2 followed by busulfan dosed to achieve a target area under the curve of 20,000mol/min for the whole course
Comparison
None
Outcome
With a median follow-up of 36.4 (range 2.9-51.5) months, 100-day, 1-year and 3-year non-relapse mortality was 3.8% (95%CI, 0-8.1%), 8% (95%CI, 2-14%), and 9.3% (95%CI, 2.6-15.9%), without a significant difference by age or HCT-CI score. One-year and 3-year relapse incidence was 10% (95%CI, 4-17%) and 18% (95%CI, 9-27%), respectively. Three-year overall survival was 80% (95%CI, 72-90%) and was similar for patients >60 and <60 years of age, as well as those with HCT-CI>3 and HCT-CI<3.
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4.
Molecular disparity of HLA-DPB1 is associated with the development of subsequent solid cancer after allogeneic hematopoietic stem cell transplantation
Zou, J., Kongtim, P., Oran, B., Srour, S. A., Greenbaum, U., Carmazzi, Y., Rondon, G., Ciurea, S. O., Ma, Q., Shpall, E. J., et al
Cancer. 2023
Abstract
BACKGROUND An increased incidence of subsequent solid cancers (SSCs) has been reported in long-term survivors of allogeneic hematopoietic stem cell transplantation (allo-HSCT), and SSC is associated with inferior mortality and morbidity. Previous studies showed that the incidence of SSC is significantly higher in those who underwent allo-HSCT from HLA-mismatched donors, suggesting that persistent alloimmunity may predispose patients to SSCs. It was recently reported that, in a cohort of patients who received allo-HSCT from an unrelated donor matched at HLA-A, -B, -C, -DRB1/3/4/5, and -DQB1 loci, HLA-DPB1 alloimmunity determined by high mismatched eplets (MEs) and Predicted Indirectly Recognizable HLA Epitopes (PIRCHE) score (PS), was associated with relapse protection and increased risk of acute graft-versus-host disease (GVHD). METHODS In the present study, the impact of HLA-DPB1 alloimmunity assessed by molecular mismatch algorithms on the development of SSCs in a cohort of 1514 patients who underwent allo-HSCT for hematologic malignancies was further investigated. ME load at the HLA-DPB1 locus was measured using the HLAMatchmaker module incorporated in HLA Fusion software, and the PS for mismatched HLA-DPB1 was calculated using the HSCT module from the PIRCHE online matching service. RESULTS In multivariable analysis after adjusting for baseline risk factors, higher ME, PS-I, and PS-II in the GVH direction, but not in the HVG direction, were associated with an increased risk of SSCs (ME: subdistribution hazard ratio [SHR] 1.58, p = .01; PS-I: SHR 1.59, p = .009; PS-II: SHR 1.71, p = .003). In contrast, nonpermissive HLA-DPB1 mismatches defined by the conventional T-cell epitope algorithm were not predictive of the risk of SSCs. Moreover, posttransplant cyclophosphamide-based GVHD prophylaxis was associated with a reduced risk of SSC (SHR 0.34, p = .021). CONCLUSIONS These results indicate for the first time that increased GVH alloreactivity could contribute to the development of SSCs in allo-HSCT survivors.
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5.
Transplant Outcomes of Myelofibrosis with Busulfan and Fludarabine Myeloablative Conditioning
Joseph, J., Srour, S. A., Milton, D. R., Ramdial, J. L., Saini, N. Y., Olson, A. L., Bashir, Q., Oran, B., Alousi, A. M., Hosing, C., et al
Transplantation and cellular therapy. 2023
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Editor's Choice
Abstract
BACKGROUND Outcomes of myelofibrosis with allogeneic stem cell transplantation (allo-SCT) have improved over the past decade and are partly related to advances in supportive treatments and conditioning regimens. Several factors are known to predict transplant outcomes. However, most studies lack homogeneity in the conditioning regimen used, which limits their ability to assess prognostic factors on transplant outcomes. OBJECTIVE We aimed to determine the risk factors that predict transplant outcomes in patients with myelofibrosis who underwent matched or mismatched allo-SCT using a uniform myeloablative conditioning regimen consisting of busulfan and fludarabine with tacrolimus and methotrexate-based graft-versus-host disease prophylaxis. STUDY DESIGN This single-center study included patients with myelofibrosis who underwent allo-SCT with a matched unrelated donor (MUD), matched related donor (MRD), or mismatched unrelated donor (MMUD) and received busulfan and fludarabine conditioning with methotrexate/tacrolimus-based GVHD prophylaxis. RESULTS Sixty-five patients with myelofibrosis met the criteria and were included in the study. At a median follow-up of 35.6 months, the 3-year cumulative incidence of relapse (CIR), non-relapse mortality (NRM), and overall survival (OS) for all study patients were 27%, 20%, and 65%, respectively. In a multivariable analysis for CIR, prior use of JAK inhibitors was significantly associated with a decreased risk of relapse (HR [95% CI], 0.33 [0.11-0.99]; p = 0.048). For NRM, HCT-CI (≥3 vs. <3, 10.09 [2.09-48.76]; p=0.004) and donor type (MUD vs. MRD, 5.38 [1.14-25.30]; p=0.033 and MMUD vs. MRD, 10.73 [1.05-109.4]; p=0.045) were associated with an increased risk of mortality. Likewise for OS, HCT-CI (≥3 vs. <3, 3.31 [1.22-8.99]; p = 0.019) and donor type (MMUD vs. MRD, 5.20 [1.35-19.98]; p = 0.016) were significantly associated with inferior survival. Longer time from diagnosis to allo-SCT seemed to confer worse survival but this didn't reach statistical significance (>12 months vs. ≤12 months: NRM, 7.20 [0.96-53.94]; p=0.055 and OS, 2.60 [0.95-7.14]; p=0.06). CONCLUSIONS In a homogenous cohort of myelofibrosis patients uniformly treated with busulfan/fludarabine myeloablative conditioning and methotrexate-based GVHD prophylaxis, we showed that donor choice and HCT-CI are the two strongest predictors for improved survival after allo-SCT.
PICO Summary
Population
People with myelofibrosis who underwent allo-SCT with a matched unrelated donor (MUD), matched related donor (MRD), or mismatched unrelated donor (MMUD) at a single centre in USA (n=176)
Intervention
Cohort for analysis: all who received myeloablative conditioning regimen consisting of busulfan and fludarabine with tacrolimus and methotrexate-based graft-versus-host disease prophylaxis (n=65)
Comparison
None
Outcome
At a median follow-up of 35.6 months, the 3-year cumulative incidence of relapse (CIR), non-relapse mortality (NRM), and overall survival (OS) for all study patients were 27%, 20%, and 65%, respectively. In a multivariable analysis for CIR, prior use of JAK inhibitors was significantly associated with a decreased risk of relapse (HR [95% CI], 0.33 [0.11-0.99]). For NRM, HCT-CI (>/=3 vs. <3, 10.09 [2.09-48.76]) and donor type (MUD vs. MRD, 5.38 [1.14-25.30] and MMUD vs. MRD, 10.73 [1.05-109.4]) were associated with an increased risk of mortality. Likewise for OS, HCT-CI (>/=3 vs. <3, 3.31 [1.22-8.99];) and donor type (MMUD vs. MRD, 5.20 [1.35-19.98]) were significantly associated with inferior survival. Longer time from diagnosis to allo-SCT seemed to confer worse survival but this didn't reach statistical significance (>12 months vs. </=12 months: NRM, 7.20 [0.96-53.94] and OS, 2.60 [0.95-7.14]).
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6.
SIRPα Mismatch Is Associated With Relapse Protection and Chronic Graft-Versus-Host Disease After Related Hematopoietic Stem Cell Transplantation for Lymphoid Malignancies
Saliba, R. M., Srour, S. A., Greenbaum, U., Ma, Q., Carmazzi, Y., Moller, M., Wood, J., Ciurea, S. O., Kongtim, P., Rondon, G., et al
Frontiers in immunology. 2022;13:904718
Abstract
Allogeneic hematopoietic stem cell transplantation (allo-HSCT) is a potentially curative therapy for hematologic malignancies. Alloreactivity after HSCT is known to be mediated by adaptive immune cells expressing rearranging receptors. Recent studies demonstrated that the innate immune system could likewise sense the non-self signals and subsequently enhance the alloimmune response. We recently demonstrated that the donor/recipient mismatch of signal regulatory protein α (SIRPα), an immunoglobulin receptor exclusively expressed on innate cells, is associated with a higher risk of cGVHD and relapse protection in a cohort of acute myeloid leukemia patients who underwent allo-HSCT. Whether these effects also occur in other hematologic malignancies remains unclear. In the present study, we compared outcomes by SIRPα match status in a cohort of 310 patients who received allo-HSCT from an HLA matched-related donor for the treatment of lymphoid malignancies. Multivariable analysis showed that SIRPα mismatch was associated with a significantly higher rate of cGVHD (hazard ratio [HR] 1.8, P= .002), cGVHD requiring systemic immunosuppressive therapy (HR 1.9, P= .005), a lower rate of disease progression (HR 0.5, P= .003) and improved progression-free survival (HR 0.5, P= .001). Notably, the effects of SIRPα mismatch were observed only in the patients who achieved >95% of donor T-cell chimerism. The mismatch in SIRPα is associated with favorable relapse protection and concurrently increased risk of cGVHD in patients who undergo allo-HSCT for lymphoid malignancies, and the optimal donor could be selected based on the finding of the study to mitigate the risk of GVHD and relapse.
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7.
Donor selection for KIR alloreactivity is associated with superior survival in haploidentical transplant with PTCy
Zou, J., Kongtim, P., Srour, S. A., Greenbaum, U., Schetelig, J., Heidenreich, F., Baldauf, H., Moore, B., Saengboon, S., Carmazzi, Y., et al
Frontiers in immunology. 2022;13:1033871
Abstract
With the continuous increase in the use of haploidentical donors for transplantation, the selection of donors becomes increasingly important. Haploidentical donors have been selected primarily based on clinical characteristics, while the effects of killer cell immunoglobulin-like receptors (KIRs) on outcomes of haploidentical-hematopoietic stem cell transplantation (haplo-HSCT) with post-transplant cyclophosphamide (PTCy) remain inconclusive. The present study aimed to thoroughly evaluate the effect of KIRs and binding ligands assessed by various models, in addition to other patient/donor variables, on clinical outcomes in haplo-HSCT. In a cohort of 354 patients undergoing their first haplo-HSCT, we found that a higher Count Functional inhibitory KIR score (CF-iKIR) was associated with improved progression-free survival (adjusted hazard ratio [HR], 0.71; P = .029) and overall survival (OS) (HR, 0.66; P = .016), while none of the other models predicted for survival in these patients. Moreover, using exploratory classification and regression tree analysis, we found that donor age <58 years combined with cytomegalovirus-nonreactive recipient was associated with the best OS, whereas donor age >58 years was associated with the worst OS. In the rest of our cohort (80%), cytomegalovirus-reactive recipients with a donor <58 years old, a higher CF-iKIR was associated with superior OS. The 3-year OS rates were 73.9%, 54.1% (HR, 1.84; P = .044), 44.5% (HR, 2.01; P = .003), and 18.5% (HR, 5.44; P <.001) in the best, better, poor, and worse donor groups, respectively. Our results suggest that KIR alloreactivity assessed by CF-iKIR score can help optimize donor selection in haplo-HSCT.
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8.
Autologous Stem Cell Transplantation for Large B-cell Lymphoma with Secondary Central Nervous System Involvement
Akin, S., Hosing, C., Khouri, I. F., Ahmed, S., Alousi, A., Fowler, N. H., Joseph, J., Truxillo, J., Ramdial, J., Maadani, F., et al
Blood advances. 2022
Abstract
Secondary central nervous system large B-cell lymphoma (SCNSL) is rare with a generally poor prognosis. There is limited data about the role of autologous stem cell transplantation (ASCT) in these high-risk patients. We explored in this study treatment outcomes and prognostic factors for patients with SCNSL who underwent ASCT. We included all consecutive patients who underwent ASCT at our institution. Primary endpoints were progression free survival (PFS) and overall survival (OS). One-hundred two patients were identified. Median age at transplant was 56 (range, 21-71) years. With a median follow-up of 56 (range, 1-256) months, the median PFS and OS were 40 and 88 months, respectively. The 4-year PFS and OS were 48% and 57%, respectively. In univariate analysis, complete remission (CR) at transplant, prior lines of therapy (≤2), normal LDH, and parenchymal involvement were significantly associated with improved PFS. For OS, only CR at transplant and ≤2 prior lines of therapy were associated with improved survival. On multivariable analysis for PFS, CR at transplant (HR 0.278, 95% CI: 0.153-0.506; p=<0.0001) and ≤ 2 prior lines of therapy (HR 0.485, 95% CI: 0.274-0.859; p=0.0131) were significantly associated with superior PFS. Similarly, CR at transplant (HR 0.352, 95% CI: 0.186-0.663; p=0.0013) and ≤ 2 prior lines of therapy (HR 0.476, 95% CI: 0.257-0.882; p=0.0183) were associated with improved survival. In the largest single center study, our findings indicate that ASCT is associated with durable responses and prolonged survival in patients with SCNSL. Patients in CR at transplant and those received less than two lines of therapy have particularly excellent outcomes.
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9.
KRD vs. VRD as induction before autologous hematopoietic progenitor cell transplantation for high-risk multiple myeloma
Gaballa, M. R., Ma, J., Rauf, M., Bassett, R., Pasvolsky, O., Tanner, M. R., Bashir, Q., Srour, S. A., Saini, N., Ramdial, J., et al
Bone marrow transplantation. 2022
Abstract
Bortezomib, lenalidomide, and dexamethasone (VRD) induction is standard prior to autologous hematopoietic cell transplantation (auto-HCT) in newly diagnosed, high-risk multiple myeloma (ND-HRMM). Carfilzomib (K) is another proteasome inhibitor approved for MM. In this single-center, retrospective analysis, we compared outcomes in ND-HRMM with pre-transplant KRD or VRD induction. High-risk was defined by t(4:14), t(14:16), 1q21 gain/amplification, or del(17p). Primary endpoints were progression-free (PFS) and overall survival (OS). Of 121 ND-HRMM patients, 63 received KRD, and 58 received VRD. Post-induction, complete (CR), very good partial (VGPR), partial response (PR), and overall response (ORR) rates were 23.8%/49.2%/25.4%/98.4% with KRD, and 19%/46.6%/27.6%/93.1% with VRD. At day 100 post-auto-HCT, these were 38.1%/42.9%/19%/100% with KRD, versus 35.1%/49.1%/12.3%/94.8% with VRD. Pre-auto-HCT, 11 (18.3%) KRD and 7 (12.5%) VRD patients had minimal residual disease (MRD)-negative CR (p = 0.45). Post-auto-HCT, 14 (41.2%) and 13 (43.3%) patients had MRD-negative CR (p = 1.000). Median PFS was 38.2 (95%CI 28.7-NA) and 45.9 months (95%CI 43.2-NA) for KRD and VRD, respectively (p = 0.25). Respective 3-year PFS and OS were 53.5% (95%CI 41.1-69.6) and 95.2% (95%CI 90-100) for KRD and 64% (95%CI 51.6-79.5) and 84.2% (95%CI 73.5-96.3, p = 0.30) for VRD. Overall, KRD induction pre-auto-HCT does not improve outcomes. Prospective, randomized studies are needed to confirm these findings.
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10.
Real-world long-term outcomes in multiple myeloma with VRD induction, Mel200-conditioned auto-HCT, and lenalidomide maintenance
Gaballa, M. R., Ma, J., Tanner, M. R., Al-Juhaishi, T., Bashir, Q., Srour, S. A., Saini, N. Y., Ramdial, J. L., Nieto, Y., Murphy, R., et al
Leukemia & lymphoma. 2022;63(3):710-721
Abstract
Standard-of-care for newly-diagnosed, autologous hematopoietic stem cell transplantation (auto-HCT)-eligible, multiple myeloma (MM) patients includes bortezomib, lenalidomide, and dexamethasone (VRD) induction followed by melphalan 200 mg/m(2) (Mel200)-conditioned auto-HCT and lenalidomide maintenance. We completed a retrospective case series assessing outcomes of 187 MM patients who received this regimen at our institution. The 100-day non-relapse mortality incidence was zero. Before auto-HCT, 9.6 and 52.9% of patients achieved a complete response (CR) or ≥ very good partial response (VGPR), respectively. At day-100 post-transplant, 29.4 and 74.9% had achieved a CR/stringent-CR (sCR) or ≥ VGPR, respectively. At the last evaluation, 57.2% of patients had CR/sCR and 87.1% had ≥ VGPR. Median follow-up, progression-free survival (PFS), and overall survival (OS) were 63.2, 50, and 101.7 months, respectively. The 5-year PFS and OS were 43.1 and 79%. High-risk cytogenetics was associated with worse outcomes. This study illustrates that VRD induction, Mel200-conditioned auto-HCT, and lenalidomide maintenance are associated with good outcomes in MM.