Letermovir Prophylaxis Is Effective for Cytomegalovirus Reactivation after Allogeneic Hematopoietic Cell Transplantation: Single Center Real-World Data

Background: Morbidity and mortality after allogeneic hematopoietic cell transplantation (alloHCT) are still essentially affected by reactivation of cytomegalovirus (CMV). Letermovir is the first drug approved for prophylaxis of CMV reactivation in seropositive patients who have undergone alloHCT. Letermovir shows neither myelo- nor nephrotoxicity, and significantly reduced the incidence of CMV reactivation in a pivotal phase III trial (NEJM 2017;377:2433). Therefore, we have adopted letermovir prophylaxis according to the label as standard policy in our institution in March 2018: in seropositive recipients letermovir is given from engraftment until day +100 or CMV reactivation. The purpose of this study was to investigate if the positive trial results could be reproduced under real-world conditions. Methods: The study cohort contained the first seropositive 82 patients who received letermovir prophylaxis at our institution (between March 2018 and March 2019). These were compared with a control cohort comprising another 82 patients who underwent alloHCT at our institution between January 2017 and March 2018 immediately before the introduction of letermovir. Quantitative PCR was used to monitor CMV viremia twice a week during the inpatient period and weekly thereafter. Patients reactivating CMV prior to engraftment were not considered as event in both groups. Results: Both cohorts were matched for underlying disease, CMV donor/recipient sero-status, use of ATG, and donor type. No higher grade adverse effects of letermovir intake were observed. With altogether 11 reactivation events, the cumulative incidence of CMV reactivation on day +100 was 13% (95%CI 6-21%) in the letermovir cohort which was significantly lower than in the control group (34 events, d +100 cumulative incidence 41% (95%CI 31-52%); HR 0.32 (95%CI 0.24-0.44); p<0.0001). Two hospitalizations for foscavir administration occurred in the letermovir group compared to 9 hospitalizations in the control group. The cumulative number of days on valganciclovir before d +100 was 373d for the 82 letermovir patients vs 1082d for the 82 control patients. There were 5 deaths before d +100 in the letermovir group (three NRM, two PD) and 7 deaths in the control group (four NRM, three PD). Conclusions: This observational study proves in a real-world setting the efficacy and safety of letermovir for the prophylaxis of CMV reactivation after alloHCT. Letermovir lowered the incidence of CMV reactivation to the same extent as observed in the approval trial. In terms of health economics, letermovir reduced hospitalization needs and costs for therapeutic anti-CMV agents. Longer follow-up will be needed to assess the impact of letermovir prophylaxis on non-relapse and overall mortality. Disclosures Derigs: MSD: Honoraria. Müller-Tidow:MSD: Membership on an entity's Board of Directors or advisory committees. Luft:Neovii: Research Funding; JAZZ: Research Funding. Dreger:MSD: Membership on an entity's Board of Directors or advisory committees, Other: Sponsoring of Symposia; AbbVie, AstraZeneca, Gilead, Janssen, Novartis, Riemser, Roche: Consultancy; Neovii, Riemser: Research Funding; AbbVie, Gilead, Novartis, Riemser, Roche: Speakers Bureau. Schmitt:MSD: Membership on an entity's Board of Directors or advisory committees, Other: Sponsoring of Symposia; Therakos Mallinckrodt: Other: Financial Support.

Download Full-text

Poor Outcomes of HLA-Mismatched Allogeneic Hematopoietic Cell Transplantation and High Ferritin Levels after a Reduced-Intensity Conditioning Regimen in Patients with Advanced Myelofibrosis

Blood ◽

10.1182/blood-2019-130338 ◽

2019 ◽

Vol 134 (Supplement_1) ◽

pp. 5742-5742

Author(s):

Han Bi Lee ◽

Jae-Ho Yoon ◽

Gi June Min ◽

Sung-Soo Park ◽

Silvia Park ◽

...

Keyword(s):

Board Of Directors ◽

Cell Transplantation ◽

Research Funding ◽

Acute Gvhd ◽

Hematopoietic Cell Transplantation ◽

Hematopoietic Cell ◽

Allogeneic Hematopoietic Cell Transplantation ◽

Reduced Intensity Conditioning ◽

Advisory Committees ◽

Reduced Intensity

Allogeneic hematopoietic cell transplantation (allo-HCT) preconditioning intensity, donor choice, and graft-versus-host disease (GVHD) prophylaxis for advanced myelofibrosis (MF) have not been fully elucidated. Thirty-five patients with advanced MF were treated with reduced-intensity conditioning (RIC) allo-HCT. We searched for matched sibling (n=16) followed by matched (n=10) or mismatched (n=5) unrelated and familial mismatched donors (n=4). Preconditioning regimen consisted of fludarabine (total 150 mg/m2) and busulfan (total 6.4 mg/kg) with total body irradiation≤ 400cGy. All showed engraftments, but four (11.4%) showed either leukemic relapse (n=3) or delayed graft failure (n=1). Two-year overall survival (OS) and non-relapse mortality (NRM) was 60.0% and 29.9%, respectively. Acute GVHD was observed in 19 patients, and grade III-IV acute GVHD was higher with HLA-mismatch (70% vs. 20%, p=0.008). Significant hepatic GVHD was observed in nine patients (5 acute, 4 chronic), and six of them died. Multivariate analysis revealed inferior OS with HLA-mismatch (HR=6.40, 95%CI 1.6-25.7, p=0.009) and in patients with high ferritin level at post-HCT D+21 (HR=7.22, 95%CI 1.9-27.5, p=0.004), which were related to hepatic GVHD and high NRM. RIC allo-HCT can be a valid choice for advanced MF. However, HLA-mismatch and high post-HCT ferritin levels related to significant hepatic GVHD should be regarded as poor-risk parameters. Disclosures Kim: Handok: Honoraria; Amgen: Honoraria; Celgene: Consultancy, Honoraria; Astellas: Consultancy, Honoraria; Hanmi: Consultancy, Honoraria; AGP: Consultancy, Honoraria, Membership on an entity's Board of Directors or advisory committees; SL VaxiGen: Consultancy, Honoraria; Novartis: Consultancy; Janssen: Honoraria; Daiichi Sankyo: Honoraria, Membership on an entity's Board of Directors or advisory committees; Otsuka: Honoraria; BL & H: Research Funding; Chugai: Honoraria; Yuhan: Honoraria; Sanofi-Genzyme: Honoraria, Research Funding; Novartis: Honoraria, Membership on an entity's Board of Directors or advisory committees. Lee:Alexion: Consultancy, Honoraria, Research Funding; Achillion: Research Funding.

Download Full-text

Letermovir prophylaxis is effective in preventing cytomegalovirus reactivation after allogeneic hematopoietic cell transplantation: single-center real-world data

Annals of Hematology ◽

10.1007/s00277-020-04362-2 ◽

2020 ◽

Author(s):

Patrick Derigs ◽

Aleksandar Radujkovic ◽

Maria-Luisa Schubert ◽

Paul Schnitzler ◽

Tilman Schöning ◽

...

Keyword(s):

Cell Transplantation ◽

Real World ◽

Hematopoietic Cell Transplantation ◽

Hematopoietic Cell ◽

Allogeneic Hematopoietic Cell Transplantation ◽

Control Group ◽

Real World Data ◽

Cytomegalovirus Reactivation ◽

Clinically Significant ◽

Cmv Reactivation

AbstractMorbidity and mortality after allogeneic hematopoietic cell transplantation (alloHCT) are still essentially affected by reactivation of cytomegalovirus (CMV). We evaluated 80 seropositive patients transplanted consecutively between March 2018 and March 2019 who received letermovir (LET) prophylaxis from engraftment until day +100 and retrospectively compared them with 80 patients without LET allografted between January 2017 and March 2018. The primary endpoint of this study was the cumulative incidence (CI) of clinically significant CMV infection (CS-CMVi) defined as CMV reactivation demanding preemptive treatment or CMV disease. With 14% CI of CS-CMVi at day +100 (11 events) was significantly lower in the LET cohort when compared to the control group (33 events, 41%; HR 0.29; p < 0.001). Whereas therapy with foscarnet could be completely avoided in the LET group, 7 out of 80 patients in the control cohort received foscarnet, resulting in 151 extra in-patient days for foscarnet administration (p = 0.002). One-year overall survival was 72% in the control arm vs 84% in the LET arm (HR 0.75 [95%CI 0.43–1.30]; p < 0.306). This study confirms efficacy and safety of LET for prophylaxis of CS-CMVi after alloHCT in a real-world setting, resulting in a significant patient benefit by reducing hospitalization needs and exposure to potentially toxic antiviral drugs for treatment of CMV reactivation.

Download Full-text

Prediction of Graft-Versus-Host Disease in Recipients of Single Mismatched Unrelated Hematopoietic Cell Transplantation Donor Using a Highly Multiplexed Proteomic Assay, MHC-Pepseq

Blood ◽

10.1182/blood-2021-153597 ◽

2021 ◽

Vol 138 (Supplement 1) ◽

pp. 1808-1808

Author(s):

Karamjeet S. Sandhu ◽

Ketevan Gendzekhadze ◽

Dongyun Yang ◽

Ryotaro Nakamura ◽

Sally Mokhtari ◽

...

Keyword(s):

Board Of Directors ◽

Cell Transplantation ◽

Graft Versus Host Disease ◽

Cumulative Incidence ◽

Acute Gvhd ◽

Hematopoietic Cell Transplantation ◽

Hematopoietic Cell ◽

Advisory Committees ◽

Graft Versus Host ◽

Mismatched Donor

Abstract Graft-versus-host disease (GVHD) remains a major cause of treatment failure after allogeneic hematopoietic cell transplantation (alloHCT). In HLA-mismatched donor setting, indirect presentation of allogeneic peptides from recipient's mismatched HLA class I or II proteins by donor or recipient antigen presenting cells can be an immunogenic driver of GVHD. However, the potential diversity of such antigens is large, and predicting them in a systematic manner has proven challenging. Using a novel, highly-multiplexed peptide-MHC binding assay (MHC-PepSeq) we sought to 1) identify allogeneic peptides derived from mismatched HLA protein that can be efficiently presented by HLA-DR, and 2) explore the possibility that the frequency of these HLA-DRB1 binding allopeptides may be predictive of clinical GVHD in HLA-DPB1 mismatched donor/recipient pairs. Using publicly-available population allele frequency data (allelefrequencies.net), we identified a set of class I and II sequences that cover >95% of alleles at each of 9 human HLA-loci (-A, -B, -C, -DRA1,-DRB1, -DQA1, -DQB1, -DPA1, -DPB1) in 3 major US populations (European Caucasian, African American, Mexican Chicano). When represented in the form of densely overlapping tiled 15-mer peptides, 7,744 unique 15mers were identified. We encoded these peptides into DNA oligonucleotides and used the PepSeq parallel synthesis protocol to generate a library of the corresponding DNA-barcoded peptides. The library was incubated with recombinantly-expressed full-length HLA proteins, washed, eluted, amplified, and sequenced to identify the various HLA-derived peptides that bind to the assayed HLA proteins (Figure 1). In the current study, DPB1-derived allopeptides in the setting of HLA-A, B, C, DRB1, and DQB1 (10/10) matched unrelated (MUD) HCT donors with a mismatch in DPB1 were investigated. The peptide library was assayed for binding to the DRB1*07:01 protein, selected since it was the common allele in this cohort. We identified 327 patients who were transplanted at our center and met these criteria. For each case, we used comprehensive in silico tiling to identify HLA-DPA and DPB-derived peptides present in the recipient but absent in the donor. This set was intersected with the peptides identified as binders to HLA-DRB1*07:01 in the 7,744-plex MHC-PepSeq assay, to arrive at a donor-recipient pair-specific set of 'allopeptides' Overall, we identified such allopeptide at the median of 0 (range: 0-8) across the 327 cases. Next, we examined an association between the number of allopeptides and acute GVHD in the cohort of 94 patients with positive HLA-DRB1*07:01. Median age at alloHCT was 60 years (range: 19-78), 53% males, 1.% bone marrow graft and only 7% female to male donors. Ablative (TBI) conditioning was delivered to 34%) pts. 83% received Tacrolimus/Sirolimus-based, and 9% received post-transplant cyclophosphamide-based GVHD prophylaxis. Patient/HCT characteristics are summarized in Table 1. In this cohort, 18% had no DPB1 mismatch, 54% had a single and 28% had double mismatches, with 21% pts carrying non-permissive DPB1 mismatches. Allopeptide score was 0 in 75% of pts. Non-permissive mismatch 9 (39%) vs. 11 (16%) were more likely to have allopeptide score ≥1 and similarly double mismatches 11 (48%) vs. 15 (21%) were more likely to have allopeptide score of ≥1. Among pts with ≥1 allopeptide score 14 (61%) had DPB1 matched or permissive mismatch. The cumulative incidence of grade 2-4 acute GVHD was 40.8% (range: 29-52) in pts with no allopeptides from DPB1 compared with 56% (range: 34-74) in those with ≥1 allopeptides (p=0.259) (Figure 2). The cumulative incidence of grade 3-4 acute GVHD and chronic GVHD were similar between allopeptide 0 vs. ≥1. Together, we show that the "MHC-PepSeq" assay can identify novel candidate HLA-derived allopeptides in 10/10 MUD HCTs. The number of such peptides are relatively low - with a majority having no allopeptide. In an exploratory analysis in a selected cohort of patients with HLA-DRB1*0701 in the setting of 10/10 MUD HCT, the number of allopeptides in our assay may be predictive of GVHD. The expanded analyses on other HLA-DRB1 restriction elements are underway. Figure 1 Figure 1. Disclosures Al Malki: CareDx: Consultancy; Hansa Biopharma: Consultancy; Neximmune: Consultancy; Jazz Pharmaceuticals, Inc.: Consultancy; Rigel Pharma: Consultancy. Ali: BMS: Speakers Bureau; Incyte: Membership on an entity's Board of Directors or advisory committees, Speakers Bureau; CTI BioPharma: Membership on an entity's Board of Directors or advisory committees. Forman: Mustang Bio: Consultancy, Current holder of individual stocks in a privately-held company; Lixte Biotechnology: Consultancy, Current holder of individual stocks in a privately-held company; Allogene: Consultancy.

Download Full-text

Letermovir Is Effective for Prevention of Cytomegalovirus Reactivation in HLA-Haploidentical Peripheral Blood Stem Cell Transplantation with Post-Transplant Cyclophosphamide

Blood ◽

10.1182/blood-2021-152116 ◽

2021 ◽

Vol 138 (Supplement 1) ◽

pp. 2858-2858

Author(s):

Takahide Ara ◽

Yuta Hasegawa ◽

Hiroyuki Ohigashi ◽

Souichi Shiratori ◽

Atsushi Yasumoto ◽

...

Keyword(s):

Stem Cell ◽

Stem Cell Transplantation ◽

Board Of Directors ◽

Cell Transplantation ◽

Cumulative Incidence ◽

Research Funding ◽

Cmv Infection ◽

Advisory Committees ◽

Cmv Disease ◽

Cmv Reactivation

Abstract [Introduction] Cytomegalovirus (CMV) infection is a common viral infection in recipients of allogeneic hematopoietic stem cell transplantation (allo-SCT). Early CMV reactivation after allo-SCT is associated with worse non-relapse mortality (NRM) and overall survival (OS). Recently, T-cell replete HLA-haploidentical SCT using post-transplant cyclophosphamide (PTCy-haplo SCT) has been developed and spread rapidly worldwide. Rationale of this strategy is assumed to be selective and cytotoxic depletion of alloreactive T cells which are responsible for graft-versus-host disease (GVHD), while preserving non-alloreactive T cells which can contribute to fight infections. However, recent studies showed that PTCy-haplo SCT was associated with the increased incidence of CMV infection. Letermovir (LET), a novel anti-CMV agent, which inhibits the CMV DNA terminase complex, was approved for the prevention of CMV reactivation in allo-SCT recipients in 2018 in some countries including Japan based on the result of a phase 3 trial. Our facility performs LET prophylaxis in allo-SCT recipient if either donor or recipient is seropositive CMV. Although LET is effective for the prevention of CMV reactivation in allo-SCT recipients, the clinical effectiveness of LET prophylaxis in PTCy-haplo SCT is not well elucidated. Based on these things, we retrospectively evaluated the efficacy of LET prophylaxis in PTCy-haplo SCT. [Methods] We retrospectively analyzed consecutive 99 recipients who received PTCy-haplo SCT at Hokkaido University Hospital from March 2013 to March 2021. We compared the cumulative incidence of CMV reactivation between the LET prophylaxis group (LET group, 33 patients) and LET non-prophylaxis group (non-LET group, 66 patients). LET was initiated on the day 0 at a dosage of 480mg daily. All patients were monitored for CMV reactivation by using the anti-CMV pp65 monoclonal antibody HRP-C7 assay at least once a week from the time of engraftment. CMV reactivation was defined as the detection of CMV antigen positive cells per 50000 white blood cells, whereas CMV disease was defined by organ dysfunction attributable to CMV. [Results] As baseline patient's characteristics were summarized in Table1, there were no difference between LET and non-LET group in terms of age, sex, underlying disease, disease risk at transplantation, prior transplantation, conditioning intensity, and CMV serostatus. All patients received peripheral blood stem cell transplantation. GVHD prophylaxis consisted of Cy (40-50 mg/kg on day 3 and 4), tacrolimus (from day 5), and mycophenolate mofetil (from day 5). The cumulative incidence of CMV reactivation at 150 days after transplantation in LET group was significantly lower than that in non-LET group (30.3% versus 69.7%; P <.001, Figure1A). Importantly, CMV disease were occurred in three patients without LET prophylaxis (gastritis, enteritis, and retinitis), but not in the patients with LET prophylaxis. The cumulative incidence of NRM at 1 year was similar between the patients with and without LET prophylaxis (17.6% versus 9.2%; P=0.366, Figure1B), as was OS at 1 year (71.5% versus 69.4%; P=0.801, Figure1C). Neutrophil engraftment was achieved in 32 patients (97%) at a median of 15 days in LET group and 64 patients (97%) at a median of 14.5 days in non-LET group (P=0.243). Furthermore, platelet engraftment was achieved in 26 patients (79%) at a median of 34 days in LET group and 57 patients (86%) at a median of 31 days in non-LET group (P=0.282). These findings suggest that LET does not affect engraftment. Interestingly, the length of hospitalization in the LET group was significantly shorter than that in non-LET group (the median, 59.5 days versus 71 days; P=0.0488), suggesting that LET suppresses CMV reactivation leading to early discharge. [Conclusion] To our best knowledge, this is the largest retrospective study about the efficacy of LET in PTCy-Haplo SCT. LET is effective for prevention of CMV reactivation in PTCy-haplo SCT. Further studies focused on the long term effect of LET prophylaxis in PTCy-haplo SCT, such as the incidence of relapse and chronic GVHD, is warranted. Figure 1 Figure 1. Disclosures Nakagawa: AbbVie GK: Research Funding; Takeda Pharmaceutical Company: Research Funding. Teshima: Gentium/Jazz Pharmaceuticals: Consultancy; Merck Sharp & Dohme: Membership on an entity's Board of Directors or advisory committees; Pfizer Inc.: Honoraria; Nippon Shinyaku Co., Ltd.: Research Funding; CHUGAI PHARMACEUTICAL CO., LTD.: Research Funding; Fuji pharma CO.,Ltd: Research Funding; Takeda Pharmaceutical Company: Honoraria, Membership on an entity's Board of Directors or advisory committees; Novartis International AG: Membership on an entity's Board of Directors or advisory committees, Other, Research Funding; TEIJIN PHARMA Limited: Research Funding; Astellas Pharma Inc.: Research Funding; Bristol Myers Squibb: Honoraria; Janssen Pharmaceutical K.K.: Other; Kyowa Kirin Co.,Ltd.: Honoraria, Research Funding; Sanofi S.A.: Research Funding.

Download Full-text

Establishment of Subspecialized Care in Hematologic Malignancies and a Hematopoietic Cell Transplantation Program

Blood ◽

10.1182/blood.v128.22.3580.3580 ◽

2016 ◽

Vol 128 (22) ◽

pp. 3580-3580

Author(s):

Edward A. Copelan ◽

Jonathan M. Gerber ◽

Saad Z Usmani ◽

Michael R. Grunwald ◽

Nilanjan Ghosh ◽

...

Keyword(s):

Board Of Directors ◽

Cell Transplantation ◽

Research Funding ◽

Hematopoietic Cell Transplantation ◽

Hematologic Malignancies ◽

Hematopoietic Cell ◽

Advisory Committees ◽

Transplantation Program ◽

Disease Specific

Abstract Introduction Access to appropriate healthcare close to home is a national and global problem with huge geographic variation in availability of subspecialized care and specific therapies, as illustrated by hematopoietic cell transplantation rates [Gratwohl, et al. Lancet Hematol, 2015]. Disease-specific physician specialization appears to improve outcomes in hematologic malignancies [Go, et al. Mayo Clin Proc, 2015]. Charlotte is the 2nd largest city in the Southeastern United States and 17th largest in the US, yet subspecialized care in hematologic malignancies including a leukemia unit and hematopoietic cell transplantation (HCT) program were non-existent 3 years ago. The closest HCT program was a 90-minute drive from Charlotte. Many patients lacked the resources or willingness to travel to a transplant center and died of potentially curable diseases. Establishment of a transplantation program, in particular, requires a substantial upfront investment, broad infrastructure and highly specialized interdisciplinary care. Better transplant outcomes have been associated with higher numbers of procedures [Loberiza, et al. Blood, 2005], but programs established over the last decade have struggled to attract adequate numbers of patients to support the required investment. Methods In 2011 Carolinas HealthCare System (CHS), which serves as a healthcare safety net for the region, decided to develop the Levine Cancer Institute as a primary through quaternary referral and treatment center, integrated through more than 12 sites, with a key focus being a program in HCT. The Department of Hematologic Malignancies and Blood Disorders was established in September 2012. We envisioned that the development of specialized care in leukemia, lymphoma, and plasma cell disorders, as well as more complex non-malignant hematologic disorders, would improve the quality of care for patients with those diseases, attract larger volumes of patients, and serve to identify patients appropriate for HCT in a timely manner. A 16 bed hematologic malignancies unit housed in a protected environment was constructed and completed in January 2014. Results Starting with 4 general hematologists, the department has grown over 4 years to include 23 faculty members, 14 of whom provide subspecialized care in hematologic malignancies and HCT. Patient volumes have grown more than six-fold during this time. The HCT Program performed its first transplant in March 2014, with a total of 60 transplants performed in 2014 and 81 in 2015. The HCT Program is on pace to perform over 100 transplants in 2016. The program received FACT accreditation in 2016, a little more than 2 years after the first HCT was performed. The age range of patients undergoing transplantation is from 22 to 76 (median 58) years. Sixty-nine percent of transplants have been autologous and 31% allogeneic, of which 65% were from haploidentical related donors. The proportion of transplants which are allogeneic is steadily increasing. More than 90% of patients who have undergone transplantation were referred through a disease-specific section. Non-relapse mortality (NRM) at 1 year is 1.8% for autologous transplants and 9.4% for allogeneic transplants, with survival rates at 1 year of 95.6% and 80.8% respectively. Notably, there is no difference in NRM (P=0.86), relapse-free survival (P=0.85), or overall survival (P=0.47) between HLA-identical and haploidentical transplant recipients. Conclusions Three years ago, for patients in Charlotte, access to subspecialized care in hematologic malignancies and HCT required significant travel. The development and growth of a program that provides disease-specific care in hematologic malignancies has overcome this barrier and has provided a base for growth of a newly established program in HCT. These developments have elevated the quality of care in hematologic malignancies in the Charlotte area and permit patients to receive appropriate and complex care close to home. Disclosures Gerber: Janssen: Research Funding; Alexion: Membership on an entity's Board of Directors or advisory committees; Spectrum: Membership on an entity's Board of Directors or advisory committees; Seattle Genetics: Membership on an entity's Board of Directors or advisory committees. Usmani:Takeda: Consultancy, Membership on an entity's Board of Directors or advisory committees, Research Funding, Speakers Bureau; Pharmacyclics: Research Funding; Novartis: Speakers Bureau; Millenium: Membership on an entity's Board of Directors or advisory committees, Speakers Bureau; BioPharma: Membership on an entity's Board of Directors or advisory committees, Research Funding, Speakers Bureau; Sanofi: Consultancy, Membership on an entity's Board of Directors or advisory committees, Research Funding, Speakers Bureau; Array: Research Funding; Amgen: Consultancy, Research Funding, Speakers Bureau; Onyx: Membership on an entity's Board of Directors or advisory committees, Research Funding, Speakers Bureau; Celgene: Consultancy, Membership on an entity's Board of Directors or advisory committees, Research Funding, Speakers Bureau; Britsol-Myers Squibb: Consultancy, Research Funding; Janssen: Membership on an entity's Board of Directors or advisory committees, Research Funding; Skyline: Membership on an entity's Board of Directors or advisory committees, Speakers Bureau. Grunwald:Amgen: Research Funding; Incyte Corporation: Consultancy, Membership on an entity's Board of Directors or advisory committees, Research Funding; Ariad: Membership on an entity's Board of Directors or advisory committees; Forma Therapeutics: Research Funding; Medtronic: Equity Ownership; Janssen: Research Funding; Alexion: Membership on an entity's Board of Directors or advisory committees. Ghosh:Pharmacyclics LLC, an AbbVie Company: Consultancy, Honoraria, Membership on an entity's Board of Directors or advisory committees, Research Funding, Speakers Bureau; AbbVie: Consultancy, Honoraria, Membership on an entity's Board of Directors or advisory committees, Speakers Bureau; SGN: Consultancy, Honoraria, Membership on an entity's Board of Directors or advisory committees, Research Funding; Janssen: Consultancy, Honoraria, Research Funding, Speakers Bureau; Gilead: Honoraria, Speakers Bureau; Bristol Myers Squibb: Consultancy, Honoraria, Research Funding; Celgene: Consultancy, Honoraria, Research Funding, Speakers Bureau; Genentech: Research Funding; TG Therapeutics: Research Funding. Bhutani:Prothena: Research Funding; Takeda Oncology: Research Funding, Speakers Bureau; Bristol-Myers Squibb: Speakers Bureau; Onyx, an Amgen subsidiary: Speakers Bureau. Symanowski:Endocyte: Consultancy; Eli Lilly & Co: Consultancy; Ra Pharma: Consultancy; Caris Life Sciences: Consultancy. Raghavan:Gerson Lehrman: Consultancy; Caris Life Sciences: Membership on an entity's Board of Directors or advisory committees. Avalos:Seattle Genetics: Membership on an entity's Board of Directors or advisory committees.

Download Full-text

Risk-Adapted Intensive Chemotherapy for Primary ACUTE Myeloid Leukemia during the Last 25 YEARS: Increase in Complete Remission RATE, Hematopoietic Cell Transplantation Access and Decrease in Relapse Incidence Have LED to Improved Survival

Blood ◽

10.1182/blood-2020-140680 ◽

2020 ◽

Vol 136 (Supplement 1) ◽

pp. 13-14

Author(s):

Ana Garrido ◽

Montserrat Hoyos ◽

Marina Diaz-Beyá ◽

Montserrat Arnan ◽

Susana Vives ◽

...

Keyword(s):

Board Of Directors ◽

Cell Transplantation ◽

Research Funding ◽

Hematopoietic Cell Transplantation ◽

Hematopoietic Cell ◽

High Dose ◽

Prognostic Impact ◽

Intensive Chemotherapy ◽

Advisory Committees ◽

Allogeneic Hct

BACKGROUND: The progress in the understanding of pathophysiology of AML has allowed the identification of genetic and immune abnormalities with prognostic impact on outcome and suitable as therapeutic targets. The genetic abnormalities are essential for risk allocation and risk-adapted treatment included the indication of hematopoietic cell transplantation. In the last decade, several studies have shown that persistence of measurable residual disease (MRD) after chemotherapy increases relapse incidence and the probability of leukemia recurrence and survival. Therefore, MRD has been progressively incorporated in prognosis estimation. In the last 25 years the CETLAM cooperative group has promoted 4 consecutive trials for AML patients fit for intensive chemotherapy and eventually HCT. Post-remission treatment was based on genetics of the disease and more recently on MRD. The aim of this study has been to investigate if the survival of patients has improved and, if so, to identify the factors that have influenced on the better outcome. METHODS: We included all patients with primary AML up to the age of 60 years enrolled in 4 consecutive Spanish CETLAM group trials. In brief, induction chemotherapy included idarubicin, cytarabine and etoposide in AML-94, AML-99 and AML-03 protocols and without etoposide in the AML-12. G-CSF priming was allowed in the two more recent trials. Post remission therapy included 1 to 3 consolidations including intermediate or high dose cytarabine. Hematopoietic transplantation indication was based on availability of an HLA-compatible donor, genetic findings and more recently MRD. Follow-up was extended to June 2020. The survival and relapse incidence analyses were censored at 5 years. Informed consent was obtained in all cases and the institutional review boards approved the protocols. RESULTS: Between 1994 and 2019, 1755 primary AML patients between 18 and 60 years-old fulfilled the inclusion criteria. The main characteristics of patients appear in table 1. Median age of the whole group was 46 years old. Overall survival (OS) in the whole group was 45% at 5 years, being significantly better in AML-03 and AML-12 than in AML-94 and AML-99 (image 1). Event free survival (EFS) in the whole group was 37% at 5 years, with also significant differences between trials. Also, the cumulative incidence of relapse (CIR) was 39% in the whole group with less relapses in the two more recent trials (image 2). To understand these findings, we analyzed first the CR rate over time that was higher in the AML-03 and AML-12 protocols (table 2). The results were different depending on genetics of AML with highest CR rate in patients with CBF AML and in those with intermediate-risk cytogenetics and favorable molecular findings; in contrast, patients with adverse cytogenetics had the lowest CR rate mainly because frequent refractoriness to therapy. According to outcomes in each MRC cytogenetic group 5y-OS was: 69±3% (63-76) in favorable group, 46±2% (43-49) in intermediate and 21±3% (16-27) in adverse group (p<0.001). 5y-EFS was 57±3% (51-64), 38±1% (35-41) and 15±2% (11-20) (p<0.001), and 5y-CIR was 30±3% (24-37), 39±2% (36-43) and 51±4% (43-59) (p<0.001), respectively (table 3). Referent to feasibility of allogeneic HCT, there was an increased access to the procedure over the years. A higher proportion of patients allografted in AML-03 and AML-12, 32% and 41% of patients in CR, respectively, compared to 16% in AML-94 and 19% in AML-99. A shortening of the interval between CR and transplantation has been observed in recent years; 3.9 months (mo) in AML-94, 2.7 mo in AML-99, 2.9 mo in AML-03 and 2.2 mo in AML-12. CONCLUSIONS: In adults with primary AML and age up to 60 years-old have improved over the last 25 years. During this period, the CETLAM group has refined the biological characterization of AML patients and tailored the post-remission therapy based on genetic markers with prognostic impact. The increased feasibility of allogeneic HCT may also justify the better results in more recent trials. Even though, there is substantial room for improvement, particularly in patients with AML and adverse genetic features. Disclosures Salamero: Pfizer: Consultancy; Jazz Pharmaceuticals: Consultancy, Honoraria; Daichii Sankyo: Honoraria; Novartis: Consultancy, Honoraria; Celgene: Consultancy, Honoraria. Moraleda:Takeda: Consultancy, Other: Travel Expenses; Sandoz: Consultancy, Other: Travel Expenses; Novartis: Consultancy, Other: Travel Expenses; Gilead: Consultancy, Other: Travel Expenses; Jazz Pharmaceuticals: Consultancy, Research Funding. Tormo:Celgene: Honoraria, Membership on an entity's Board of Directors or advisory committees; Pfizer: Honoraria; Novartis: Honoraria, Membership on an entity's Board of Directors or advisory committees; Janssen: Honoraria; MSD: Honoraria; Daiichi Sankyo: Honoraria; Servier: Honoraria; Roche: Membership on an entity's Board of Directors or advisory committees; Astellas: Membership on an entity's Board of Directors or advisory committees. Ribera:Pfizer, Amgen: Research Funding; Pfizer, Amgen, Ariad, Novartis: Consultancy, Speakers Bureau. Sureda Balari:Roche: Honoraria; Incyte: Consultancy; Janssen: Consultancy, Honoraria; Gilead/Kite: Consultancy, Honoraria; Novartis: Consultancy, Honoraria; Sanofi: Consultancy, Honoraria; Merck Sharpe and Dohme: Consultancy, Honoraria, Speakers Bureau; Celgene/Bristol-Myers Squibb: Consultancy, Honoraria; Takeda: Consultancy, Honoraria, Speakers Bureau; BMS: Speakers Bureau; Celgene: Consultancy, Honoraria. Sierra:Jazz Pharmaceuticals: Research Funding; Pfizer: Consultancy, Honoraria, Membership on an entity's Board of Directors or advisory committees, Speakers Bureau; Daiichi Sankyo: Consultancy, Honoraria, Membership on an entity's Board of Directors or advisory committees, Speakers Bureau; Abbvie: Consultancy, Honoraria, Membership on an entity's Board of Directors or advisory committees, Speakers Bureau; Novartis: Consultancy, Honoraria, Membership on an entity's Board of Directors or advisory committees, Speakers Bureau; Astellas: Consultancy, Honoraria, Membership on an entity's Board of Directors or advisory committees; Roche: Consultancy, Honoraria, Membership on an entity's Board of Directors or advisory committees; Gilead-Kite: Consultancy, Honoraria, Membership on an entity's Board of Directors or advisory committees.

Download Full-text

Panobinostat As a Maintenance Therapy after Autologous Hematopoietic Cell Transplantation for Patients with Multiple Myeloma

Blood ◽

10.1182/blood-2019-131451 ◽

2019 ◽

Vol 134 (Supplement_1) ◽

pp. 3189-3189

Author(s):

Taiga Nishihori ◽

Rachid Baz ◽

Leonel Ochoa ◽

Omar Alexis Castaneda Puglianini ◽

Kenneth H. Shain ◽

...

Keyword(s):

Multiple Myeloma ◽

Maintenance Therapy ◽

Board Of Directors ◽

Cell Transplantation ◽

Research Funding ◽

Hematopoietic Cell Transplantation ◽

Hematopoietic Cell ◽

Advisory Committees ◽

Autologous Hct ◽

Autologous Hematopoietic Cell Transplantation

Background: Autologous hematopoietic cell transplantation (HCT) followed by maintenance therapy with an immunomodulatory agent or a proteasome inhibitor remains an important strategy for upfront treatment in multiple myeloma (MM) with progression-free survival (PFS) and overall survival (OS) advantage. We designed a two-arm, open-label prospective study to examine the safety and tolerability of two different dosing schedules of an oral pan-histone deacetylase inhibitor, panobinostat (pano) as an alternative maintenance therapy option in patients with MM (NCT02722941). Methods: A total of 30 MM patients who underwent autologous HCT within the preceding 90 to 180 days were enrolled at Moffitt Cancer Center using a sequential alternating allocation to starting dose of either Cohort A: 20 mg PO 3/week, q 2 weeks on a 28-day cycle, or Cohort B: 10 mg PO daily for 7 days, q 2 weeks on a 28-day cycle, for 12 cycles. Dose level -1 was cohort A: 15 mg 3/week; and cohort B: 10 mg 4/week. Patients with clinically significant cardiac diseases, bradycardia, QTc > 470 msec, bifascicular block were ineligible. EKG was performed on pre- and post-dose on day 1 & 5 of cycle 1, and pre-dose on day 1 of cycles 2-4. Relative dose intensity (RDI), a ratio of amount of drug actually delivered in mg over the amount of planned dose in mg, was calculated to evaluate the treatment feasibility as a surrogate measure. Results: The median age of the entire cohort was 60 (range, 40-73) years with a male/female = 18/12. Disease characteristics are summarized in the Table. Patients initiated pano maintenance at a median of 131 (range 91 - 178) days after autologous HCT. As of 8/1/2019, 16 patients (8 in each cohort) completed full 12 cycles of pano. The RDI for the entire cohort, cohort A, and cohort B was 94.1% (33,750mg/35,860, 98% (16,350mg/16,680mg), and 90.7% (17,400mg/19,180mg), respectively. One patient in cohort A had dose reduction, and 6 patients in cohort B had dose reductions with cytopenias (43%) and GI toxicities (43%) being the most common reasons. No patients required dose modifications due to QT prolongation thus far. There were 3 possibly treatment-associated serious adverse events (pneumonia=2; colitis=1) but all patients successfully resumed pano. Three patients progressed while on pano maintenance. No mortality has been observed thus far. Ten patients are still on pano treatment. The median follow-up is 11 (range, 1-29) months. Conclusions: RDI is 90% overall and panobinostat as a single oral maintenance agent either at 20 mg three times per week or 10 mg po daily for 7 days on alternating weeks appears to be overall well tolerated. There were more dose reductions required in the 10 mg starting dose (cohort B). Panobinostat is a safe alternative for maintenance therapy after autologous HCT. Longer follow-up is needed to confirm the utility of this approach and updated results will be presented at the meeting. Disclosures Nishihori: Novartis: Research Funding; Karyopharm: Research Funding. Baz:Sanofi: Research Funding; Bristol-Myers Squibb: Research Funding; AbbVie: Research Funding; Merck: Research Funding; Celgene: Membership on an entity's Board of Directors or advisory committees, Research Funding; Karyopharm: Membership on an entity's Board of Directors or advisory committees, Research Funding. Shain:Takeda: Membership on an entity's Board of Directors or advisory committees; Amgen: Membership on an entity's Board of Directors or advisory committees; Celgene: Membership on an entity's Board of Directors or advisory committees; Bristol-Myers Squibb: Membership on an entity's Board of Directors or advisory committees; AbbVie: Research Funding; Sanofi Genzyme: Membership on an entity's Board of Directors or advisory committees; Janssen: Membership on an entity's Board of Directors or advisory committees; Adaptive Biotechnologies: Consultancy. Brayer:Janssen: Consultancy, Speakers Bureau; BMS: Consultancy, Speakers Bureau. Locke:Kite: Other: Scientific Advisor; Novartis: Other: Scientific Advisor; Cellular BioMedicine Group Inc.: Consultancy. Alsina:Bristol-Myers Squibb: Research Funding; Janssen: Speakers Bureau; Amgen: Speakers Bureau. OffLabel Disclosure: Panobinostat single agent maintenance therapy after autologous hematopoietic cell transplantation for multiple myeloma

Download Full-text

Outcomes of Total Body Irradiation- Versus Chemotherapy-Based Myeloablative Conditioning Regimen in Haploidentical Hematopoietic Cell Transplantation with Post-Transplant Cyclophosphamide for Acute Lymphoblastic Leukemia: ALWP of the EBMT Study

Blood ◽

10.1182/blood-2019-122258 ◽

2019 ◽

Vol 134 (Supplement_1) ◽

pp. 320-320 ◽

Cited By ~ 1

Author(s):

Bhagirathbhai Dholaria ◽

Myriam Labopin ◽

Emanuele Angelucci ◽

Johanna Tischer ◽

Mutlu Arat ◽

...

Keyword(s):

Board Of Directors ◽

Cell Transplantation ◽

Research Funding ◽

Hematopoietic Cell Transplantation ◽

Chronic Gvhd ◽

Univariate Analysis ◽

Disease Status ◽

Advisory Board ◽

Hematopoietic Cell ◽

Advisory Committees

Background The intensity of a conditioning regimen has significant impact on outcomes of allogeneic hematopoietic cell transplantation in acute leukemia. In acute lymphoblastic leukemia (ALL) patients undergoing matched donor transplant, total body irradiation (TBI)- based myeloablative conditioning (MAC) regimen was associated with improved leukemia free survival (LFS) compared to chemotherapy (CT)-based MAC (Eder S. et al. 2017). Haploidentical hematopoietic cell transplantation(haplo-HCT) with post-transplant cyclophosphamide (PTCy) has emerged as a safe alternative in absence of a matched donor. The optimal MAC in haplo-HCT setting is yet to be defined. We studied the outcomes of TBI- vs. CT-based MAC in ALL patients undergoing haplo-HCT and reported to the Acute Leukemia Working Party of the EBMT. Methods The study included 427 ALL (B-ALL-75%) patients, that underwent haplo-HCT with PTCy during the years 2010-2018, following TBI- (n=188, 44%) or CT- (n=239, 56%) based MAC. Regimen intensity was defined by EBMT criteria and cases with busulfan dose <9 mg/kg or TBI dose ≤6 Gy were excluded. All disease status were included (CR1=208, CR2+=135; advanced=84). Ninety-one (27%) patients had Philadelphia+ disease. Graft source was bone marrow in 229 (54%) patients. Fludarabine-TBI (72%) and thiotepa-busulfan-fludarabine (65%) were the most common TBI and CT-based regimens, respectively. Cyclosporin with mycophenolate was used as GVHD prophylaxis in 64% of patients. The patients, disease, and transplant related characteristics were similar in both cohorts. Median patient age was 32 yrs and the median follow ups for TBI and CT cohort were 20.7 (IQR-11.7-35.3) and 26.2 (IQR-10.2-41) months, respectively. Results In univariate analysis, day 100 incidences of acute GVHD II-IV and III-VI were 38% vs. 30% (p-0.07) and 19% vs. 13% (p-0.14) for TBI and CT cohort, respectively. Two-year overall and severe chronic GVHD incidences were 34% vs. 30% (p-0.51) and 17% vs. 12% (p-0.18) for TBI and CT cohort, respectively. Graft failure was reported in 6 (3%) and 19 (8%)(p-0.09) patients who received TBI and CT-based MAC, respectively. Death from veno-occlusive disease was reported in 4 (5%) TBI patients and 8 (7%) CT patients. There was no difference in reported deaths due to infection (28%) or interstitial pneumonitis (4%) among study cohorts. In multivariate analysis, TBI was associated with significant improvement in nonrelapse mortality (NRM) [HR=0.51, 95% CI:0.32-0.83, p<0.01] and LFS [HR=0.71, 95% CI:0.52-0.97, p-0.03] and higher incidence of aGVHD II-IV [HR=1.5, 95% CI:1.02-2.19, p-0.04]. Finally, relapse incidence (RI), acute GVHD (aGVHD) III-IV, OS and GVHD free relapse free survival (GRFS) did not differ between the groups. Two-year NRM, LFS and OS of TBI and CT cohort were 21% vs. 31% (p<0.01); 45% vs. 37% (p-0.05) and 51% vs. 47% (p-0.18), respectively (Figure 1). Other factors negatively impacting OS were disease status (CR2, HR=1.69, p-0.01 or advance, HR=2.62, p<0.01) and use of peripheral blood as graft source (HR=1.49, p-0.02). Interestingly, peripheral blood graft source also negatively impacted LFS (HR=1.44, p-0.02), aGVHD II-IV (HR=1.58, p-0.02 and GRFS (HR=1.54, p<0.01). Philadelphia+ disease was associated with reduced RI (HR=0.39, p-0.01) but had no impact on LFS (HR=0.80, p-0.29) or OS (HR=0.81, p-0.34)(Table 1). In a subgroup univariate analysis of patients <40 yrs old, TBI was associated with reduced 2-year NRM (19% vs. 28%, p-0.04) without impacting other outcome measures. In patients with pre-HCT disease status CR2 or advance disease, improvement in 2-year NRM (22% vs. 36%, p-0.02) was observed with TBI but no interaction was seen with other endpoints. Conclusions TBI based MAC resulted in significant reduction of NRM, translating into a better LFS without impacting aGVHD III-IV, chronic GVHD, RI or OS when compared to CT based MAC. Non-significant difference in OS between TBI and CT cohorts might be related to lower number of events, short follow-up and/or salvage therapies after relapse. These novel findings based on a large cohort of ALL patients, support the use of TBI based MAC and bone marrow graft in haplo-HCT with PTCy. Disclosures Dholaria: Celgene: Honoraria. Labopin:Jazz Pharmaceuticals: Honoraria. Angelucci:Novatis: Honoraria, Other: Chair Steering Committee TELESTO protocol; Celgene: Honoraria, Other: Participation in DMC; BlueBirdBio: Other: Local advisory board; Jazz Pharmaceuticals: Other: Local advisory board; Roche: Other: Local advisory board; Vertex Pharmaceuticals Incorp., and CRISPR Therapeutics: Other: Participation in DMC. Apperley:Bristol Myers Squibb: Membership on an entity's Board of Directors or advisory committees, Speakers Bureau; Incyte: Membership on an entity's Board of Directors or advisory committees, Research Funding, Speakers Bureau; Novartis: Membership on an entity's Board of Directors or advisory committees, Research Funding, Speakers Bureau; Pfizer: Membership on an entity's Board of Directors or advisory committees, Research Funding, Speakers Bureau. Socie:Alexion: Consultancy. Mohty:Jazz Pharmaceuticals: Honoraria, Research Funding.

Download Full-text

A Refined Model of HLA-DP Permissiveness Improves Stratification of Acute Graft-Versus-Host Disease Risks after Unrelated Hematopoietic Cell Transplantation: A Retrospective Study from the CIBMTR

Blood ◽

10.1182/blood-2021-146957 ◽

2021 ◽

Vol 138 (Supplement 1) ◽

pp. 2890-2890

Author(s):

Esteban Arrieta-Bolanos ◽

Pietro Crivello ◽

Meilun He ◽

Tao Wang ◽

Shahinaz M. Gadalla ◽

...

Keyword(s):

Board Of Directors ◽

Cell Transplantation ◽

Research Funding ◽

Hematopoietic Cell Transplantation ◽

Patent Application ◽

Multivariable Analysis ◽

Significant Proportion ◽

Cell Epitope ◽

Hematopoietic Cell ◽

Advisory Committees

Abstract Introduction: Permissive HLA-DPB1 mismatches defined by the T-cell epitope (TCE) model are an established selection criterion for unrelated donors in allogeneic hematopoietic cell transplantation (alloHCT) (Dehn et al. Blood 2019). Based on biological evidence, the TCE model has classified HLA-DPB1 alleles into at least three functional groups, one of which (TCE group 3; TCE3) houses a large number of alleles with different structural and functional characteristics. We have recently shown that structurally close HLA-DP allotypes have similar peptide-binding motifs and share a significant proportion of their immunopeptidomes, the latter being fundamental for permissiveness (Meurer & Crivello et al. Blood 2021). Hence, we hypothesized that HLA-DPB1 mismatches involving alleles that encode structurally distant allotypes within TCE3 could be less permissive than those involving alleles that encode structurally closer allotypes, and thus have a differential impact on clinical outcomes. Methods: Multidimensional scaling techniques were used to compare 28 polymorphic positions (amino acids 8-215) among 51 alleles present in a cohort of 5,140 10/10 matched patient-donor pairs who received a first alloHCT for AML, ALL, or MDS between 2008-2017. Based on these analyses, TCE3-permissive mismatches (N=2,216) were further stratified into those involving structurally close or more distant combinations and compared with HLA-DPB1-matched (N=785) and non-permissively mismatched (N=2,023) pairs. These models were tested in parallel to the "classical" TCE model considering permissive mismatches (N=2,332) as a whole, to determine their association with overall survival (OS), disease-free survival (DFS), treatment-related mortality (TRM), primary disease relapse, and acute (a) and chronic (c)GVHD. Kaplan-Meier analysis and log-rank testing were used to compare the median OS and DFS. The incidences of GVHD, relapse and TRM were compared using competing risks and Gray's test. The effect of HLA-DPB1 mismatch on time-to-event outcomes was modelled by Cox regression after adjusting for confounders and testing for the proportional hazards assumption. Results: Within TCE3, we identified a subgroup of 4 frequent and structurally as well as functionally closely related alleles (i.e. DPB1*02:01, 04:01, 04:02, 23:01) that form a separate cluster (Figure 1A). These "core" alleles have similar bound-peptide motifs (van Balen et al. J Immunol 2020) and can be distinguished from other alleles in TCE3 in terms of the strength of in vitro alloreactive responses elicited from permissive responders (Meurer et al. Front Immunol 2018). Moreover, principal component analysis identified the HLA-DP 84-87 DEAV/GGMP motif as a major factor driving structural variability among TCE3 alleles (not shown). We used these observations to stratify TCE3 permissive mismatches in the allo-HCT cohort into "core" (N=930) and "non-core" (N=1,286) or into DEAV/GGPM-matched (N=1,209) and mismatched (N=1,007) pairs (Figure 1B). Multivariable analysis confirmed the association of aGVHD2-4 for the classical TCE model of non-permissive mismatching (p<.0001) and revealed a trend in DEAV/GGPM and "core"/"non-core" TCE3-permissive models. When compared to HLA-DPB1 allele matched pairs the risks of aGVHD2-4 increased progressively with "core" TCE3-permissive (HR 1.12 [0.98-1.28]; p=0.1012), "non-core" TCE3-permissive (HR 1.24 [1.06-1.46]; p= 0.0082), and non-permissive mismatches (HR 1.32 [1.16-1.50]; p<.0001) (Figure 1C, "core" vs. "non-core" HR 0.90 [0.80-1.01]; p=0.062). Similar albeit less significant results were obtained with the DEAV/GGPM model. The "core"/"non-core" TCE3 model was also associated with TRM with alloHCT from "core" TCE3-permissive donors showing lower risks of TRM than "non-core" TCE3-permissive (HR 0.82 [0.70-0.96]; p=0.0118) and non-permissive donors (HR 0.78 [0.68-0.88]; p=0.0002). Conclusion: Our results suggest that structural differences within TCE3 that reflect functional divergence and differential immunogenicity of alleles in this group associate with the risks of aGVHD and TRM after alloHCT. Hence, within the population of 10/10 matched donors, selection of "core" TCE3-permissive donors might reduce patient morbidity after transplantation. Figure 1 Figure 1. Disclosures Paczesny: Medical University of South Carolina: Patents & Royalties: inventor on the ST2 bispecific antibody patent application. Lee: AstraZeneca: Research Funding; Incyte: Research Funding; Janssen: Other; Kadmon: Research Funding; Novartis: Membership on an entity's Board of Directors or advisory committees, Research Funding; Pfizer: Research Funding; Syndax: Research Funding; Takeda: Research Funding; National Marrow Donor Program: Membership on an entity's Board of Directors or advisory committees; Amgen: Research Funding.

Download Full-text

Dynamic Easix Scores Closely Predict Non-Relapse Mortality after Allogeneic Hematopoietic Cell Transplantation

Blood ◽

10.1182/blood-2019-125834 ◽

2019 ◽

Vol 134 (Supplement_1) ◽

pp. 1971-1971

Author(s):

Mariam T. Nawas ◽

Miriam Sanchez-Escamilla ◽

Sean M. Devlin ◽

Molly A. Maloy ◽

Sergio A Giralt ◽

...

Keyword(s):

Board Of Directors ◽

Cell Transplantation ◽

Research Funding ◽

Hematopoietic Cell Transplantation ◽

Ex Vivo ◽

Hematopoietic Cell ◽

Categorical Variable ◽

Advisory Committees ◽

Gvhd Prophylaxis ◽

Over Time

Background: Endothelial Activation and Stress Index (EASIX) was developed as a simple surrogate of endothelial dysfunction and when evaluated pre-allogeneic hematopoietic cell transplantation (allo-HCT), is one of the strongest tools for predicting non-relapse mortality (NRM). In several datasets, we have found that high EASIX scores at days +30 and +100 post allo-HCT and at the onset of graft-versus-host disease (GVHD) are associated with higher NRM and poorer overall survival (OS) (data unpublished). These data demonstrate that EASIX analyzed as a categorical variable at specific landmarks is associated with outcomes after allo-HCT. However, the trend of EASIX scores has never been evaluated as a continuous variable over time. We hypothesized that defining the natural history of changes in EASIX post-HCT would help us identify an optimal time point at which EASIX has the highest discrimination for NRM. We also sought to determine whether changes in EASIX over time may be a more informative marker of NRM. Methods: We evaluated 509 adult patients who received an unmodified or ex-vivo CD34+-selected allo-HCT between April 2008 and December 2016. One hundred and forty-nine patients underwent unmodified, reduced intensity or nonmyeloablative allo-HCT with uniform GVHD prophylaxis of sirolimus/tacrolimus and low-dose methotrexate. Three hundred and sixty patients underwent myeloablative allo-HCT with ex-vivo CD34+ selection (CliniMACS® CD34 Reagent System) as GVHD prophylaxis. The EASIX score (LDH*creatinine/platelet count) was calculated at continuous timepoints from baseline [day -30 to day -10] until 1-year post-HCT. For each longitudinal evaluation, the concordance of EASIX was estimated for NRM events occurring in the subsequent 180 days. A log transformation using base 2 (log2) was applied to all EASIX variables to reduce skew. A one-unit increase in log2 EASIX is associated with a doubling (one-fold increase) of EASIX on the original scale. Disease relapse or death were considered competing risks for NRM. Results: Patient and HCT characteristics are detailed in Table 1. Median age at HCT was 56 years (range 19-78) and 59% of patients were males. The majority of unmodified allo-HCT were done for non-Hodgkin lymphoma (69%), while the majority of CD34-selected allo-HCTs were done for acute leukemia (61%). Most patients had sensitive disease at time of HCT (CR=61%; PR=13%). All patients except two received peripheral blood mobilized allografts. HCT-CI was 0 in 24% of patients, 1-2 in 32% and ≥ 3 in 44%. Sixty-eight patients experienced NRM within 1-year post-HCT. Causes of death in these patients were infection (41%), GVHD (29%), toxicity/organ failure (24%) and other (6%). Among all patients, EASIX scores rise rapidly early post-HCT and peak day +8 followed by sharp decline until day +40. Thereafter, EASIX scores tend to downtrend, but remain above baseline for the duration of the first year post-HCT (Figure 1). EASIX discrimination of 180-day NRM increases from time of allo-HCT until day +180 to +210, when concordance is highest (concordance index=0.85) (Figure 2). Overall, the ability of the EASIX score to discriminate NRM event times is similar when EASIX is analyzed as a categorical variable at landmark timepoints and as change from pre-HCT baseline EASIX score. In the first days post-HCT, EASIX values rise to a similar degree in patients regardless of whether they experience NRM or relapse in the following 180 days. Later in the post allo-HCT course, patients who do not experience NRM, including patients who relapse, have consistently lower EASIX scores compared to those who experience NRM in the following 180 days (Figure 3). Conclusions: Our data are the first to characterize the continuous trend of EASIX scores after allo-HCT, demonstrating that EASIX scores are highly dynamic and have variable concordance with NRM when analyzed longitudinally. While pre-HCT EASIX can be used to help guide allo-HCT treatment decisions prior to allo-HCT, evaluation of the dynamic changes in EASIX scores may better predict risk of NRM over time as patients acquire additional endothelial injury and toxicities after HCT. Assessment of dynamic EASIX scores may be useful in guiding novel investigative approaches to reduce the risk of toxicities and NRM along the allo-HCT journey. Disclosures Giralt: Actinium: Consultancy, Research Funding; Johnson & Johnson: Consultancy, Research Funding; Amgen: Consultancy, Research Funding; Spectrum Pharmaceuticals: Consultancy; Celgene: Consultancy, Research Funding; Novartis: Consultancy; Jazz Pharmaceuticals: Consultancy; Takeda: Consultancy, Research Funding; Kite: Consultancy; Miltenyi: Research Funding. Perales:Miltenyi: Research Funding; Kyte/Gilead: Research Funding; Servier: Membership on an entity's Board of Directors or advisory committees; Medigene: Membership on an entity's Board of Directors or advisory committees; Merck: Consultancy, Honoraria; Nektar Therapeutics: Honoraria, Membership on an entity's Board of Directors or advisory committees; Incyte: Honoraria, Membership on an entity's Board of Directors or advisory committees, Research Funding; Bristol-Meyers Squibb: Honoraria, Membership on an entity's Board of Directors or advisory committees; Bellicum: Honoraria, Membership on an entity's Board of Directors or advisory committees; Abbvie: Honoraria, Membership on an entity's Board of Directors or advisory committees; NexImmune: Membership on an entity's Board of Directors or advisory committees; MolMed: Membership on an entity's Board of Directors or advisory committees; Takeda: Honoraria, Membership on an entity's Board of Directors or advisory committees; Omeros: Honoraria, Membership on an entity's Board of Directors or advisory committees; Novartis: Honoraria, Membership on an entity's Board of Directors or advisory committees. Scordo:McKinsey & Company: Consultancy; Angiocrine Bioscience, Inc.: Consultancy.

Download Full-text