Recent Research
Stay up-to-date on the advancing field of HCT with short summaries and links to the most relevant published research.
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New scoring system offers HCT risk stratification for patients with myelofibrosis
April 2019Gagelmann N, et al., Blood Journal – Researchers have developed a myelofibrosis transplant scoring system (MTSS) that can be predictive of allogeneic hematopoietic stem cell transplantation (HCT) outcomes of patients with primary and post-essential thrombocythemia/polycythemia vera myelofibrosis. The MTSS can help determine if a patient is a good candidate for HCT and provide insight for future care.
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Review: Scientific advances in myelodysplastic syndromes
March 2019Löwenberg B, Blood Journal – A series of review articles in the Blood Journal provides a comprehensive overview of the current landscape of MDS, highlighting advances in biological and clinical science.
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Geriatric assessment and targeted interventions recommended for older patients undergoing allogeneic HCT
February 2019With an increasing number of older patients undergoing allogeneic hematopoietic cell transplantation (HCT), researchers studied the incidence and impact of transplant-related geriatric syndromes. The results suggest that older patients may benefit from geriatric assessment and targeted interventions aimed at i
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Event-free survival improved with midostaurin for patients with FLT3-ITD-mutated AML
February 2019The addition of the multi-targeted kinase inhibitor, midostaurin, to chemotherapy followed by allogeneic hematopoietic cell transplantation (HCT) significantly improved event-free survival (EFS) for patients with acute myeloid leukemia (AML) with FLT 3 internal tandem duplication (ITD). That’s according to the
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Timing of molecular testing may enhance treatment decisions for patients with AML
January 2019For patients with acute myeloid leukemia (AML), the timing of molecular testing can enhance patient management decisions and clinical trials recommendations. Researchers highlighted evidence that supports molecular testing at diagnosis, complete remission and relapse. At diagnosis, gene panel sequencing
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Adding genomic data to new prognostic model improves predictors of post-HCT outcomes in patients with MDS
December 2018Nazha A, et al. ASH Annual Meeting 2018 - Researchers have developed a new personalized hematopoietic cell transplantation (HCT) outcomes prediction model for patients with myelodysplastic syndromes that incorporates both genomic and clinical data. The new genomic-clinical model can help physicians better identify patients who may or may not benefit from HCT.
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Geriatric assessment helps inform decision making and management for older adults with AML
November 2018Loh KP and Klepin HD. Blood Advances - The presenters of this Blood Advances Talk recommend geriatric assessment for older adults with acute myeloid leukemia (AML). They reason that adults of the same age can vary based on underlying health status and physiologic reserve, therefore, decision making and management cannot be optimized using strategies based on chronologic age.
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Emerging prognostic factors identify older adults with high-risk AML likely to benefit from HCT
November 2018Veltri L, et al. Bio Blood Marrow Transplant - In a recent study, researchers analyzed hematopoietic cell transplant (HCT) outcomes in 185 patients (age >65) with high-risk acute myeloid leukemia (AML) and found the strongest independent risk factor for overall survival (OS) and relapse was associated with achievement of measurable residual disease negative status prior to HCT. Additional prognostic factors identified in this study could help identify patients most likely to benefit from HCT treatment.
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Are the presence of post-HCT mutations in patients with MDS associated with higher risk of disease progression?
October 2018Duncavage EJ, et al. N Engl J Med. – An exploratory study of 90 adults with myelodysplastic syndromes (MDS) evaluated the association of mutations detected after allogeneic hematopoietic cell transplantation (HCT) with disease progression and survival.
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Residual disease assessment using next gen-sequencing is predictive of outcomes for patients with AML
October 2018Felicitas T., et al. Blood Journal – In this study, researchers found that next-generation sequencing (NGS) molecular measurable residual disease (MRD) assessment in patients with acute myeloid leukemia (AML) is highly predictive of relapse and survival outcomes when tested in complete remission (CR) before allogeneic hematopoietic cell transplantation (HCT).
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Prognostic factors identified for MDS patients most likely to benefit from induction chemotherapy after HMA failure
September 2018Researchers identified several prognostic factors for patients with myelodysplastic syndromes (MDS) who would most benefit from induction chemotherapies as a bridge to allogeneic hematopoietic cell transplantation (HCT) after hypomethylating agent (HMA) failure. (Ball B, et al. Blood Advances)
Learn which prognostic factors led to higher response rates and overall survival
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Experts Highlight Latest Advances in Immunotherapies for Hematologic Diseases
July 2018Paczesny S, et al. Blood – This series in the journal Blood outlines both current obstacles and new opportunities for the future on a selection of emerging immunotherapies now available to patients with hematologic diseases. -
Risk-Adapted Treatment Strategies for Older Patients with AML
July 2018Arellano M, et al. Cancer – In this review, the authors argue that the current treatment algorithm for older patients with acute myeloid leukemia (AML) ─ induction, followed by consolidation (with or without transplantation) versus hospice ─ is no longer sufficient. -
Minimal Residual Disease Identifies Patients Who May Benefit from HCT in First Complete Remission
June 2018Freeman SD, et al. J Clin Oncol – A large-scale, long-term study of adults with acute myeloid leukemia (AML) or myelodysplastic syndromes (MDS) has shown that measurable or minimal residual disease (MRD) status can be used for risk stratification to determine which patients may benefit from hematopoietic cell transplantation (HCT). -
Allogeneic HCT is Feasible for Patients Aged ≥70 Years
June 2018Al Malki MM, et al. Biol Blood Marrow Transplant – Patients aged 70 years and older undergoing reduced-intensity allogeneic HCT can achieve 2-year overall survival rates of 68%. -
New Prognostic System for Patients with Relapsed Follicular Lymphoma
May 2018Sureda A, et al. Cancer – A large-scale, long-term study of patients with relapsed follicular lymphoma (FL) has identified a new prognostic scoring system to assess risks of allogeneic hematopoietic cell transplantation (HCT). Results have shown that HCT can lead to a 5-year overall survival (OS) of 61% and a progression-free survival of 52%. -
Experts Debate Allo-HCT for Patients with Hodgkin Lymphoma Relapsing After Auto-HCT
May 2018Peggs KS and Moscowitz CH. Blood Advances – In a Point-Counterpoint feature in Blood Advances, two prominent hematologists, Drs. Karl S. Peggs and Craig H. Moscowitz, debate “Should all patients with Hodgkin lymphoma who relapse after autologous HCT be considered for allogeneic HCT?” -
Delayed Auto-HCT Can Lead to Inferior Survival Rates in Patients with MM
May 2018Kansagra A, et al. Biol Blood Marrow Transplant – Patients with multiple myeloma (MM) who undergo stem cell collection in preparation for an autologous HCT have lower outcomes if they delay transplant and are unable to receive their stem cells due to disease relapse. -
Study Shows Age Doesn't Affect Survival in HCT for NHL
April 2018Shah NN, et al. Blood Advances – Results from a study of 1,629 older adults show that older age per se should not make a patient ineligible for an allogeneic hematopoietic cell transplant (HCT) in non-Hodgkin lymphoma (NHL). -
Spotlight on Novel Therapies to Improve Post-HCT Graft-Versus-Leukemia Effects
April 2018Zeiser R, et al. Blood – The latest research in cellular therapies, antibody-based treatments, and tyrosine kinase inhibitor (TKI)-based approaches to enhance GVL effects are outlined in articles published in a special edition of Blood. -
Sorafenib Improves HCT Outcomes in Patients with FLT3-ITD AML
April 2018Xuan L, et al. Cancer – Three-year relapse rates were cut in half when allogeneic hematopoietic cell transplantation (HCT) patients with FLT3‐ITD acute myeloid leukemia (AML) received pre-transplant sorafenib, according to results of a study of 144 patients. -
HCT Can Be an Effective Treatment for Young Adults with Immune Deficiencies
April 2018Fox TA, et al. Blood – Young adults with primary immunodeficiencies (PIDs) undergoing allogeneic hematopoietic cell transplantation (HCT) can achieve a 3-year overall survival greater than 80%, according to a study of 29 consecutive young adults transplanted at two U.K. hospitals. -
Risk-Stratification Tools for Treating Patients with AML in CR1
February 2018Menghrajani KN, et al. Blood Advances – This podcast discusses the state-of-the-art tools available to physicians to risk-stratify patients with acute myeloid leukemia (AML) in first complete remission (CR1). -
Auto-HCT Improves Survival in Patients with FL and Early Therapy Failure
February 2018Casulo C, et al. Biol Blood Marrow Transplant – Patients with follicular lymphoma (FL) experiencing therapy failure within 2 years of frontline chemotherapy had better outcomes with an autologous HCT (auto-HCT) compared to a matched cohort of patients who did not undergo auto-HCT. -
Ethical Challenges in HCT for Sickle Cell Disease
February 2018Nickel RS, et al. Biol Blood Marrow Transplant – People with sickle cell disease (SCD) experience a shortened life expectancy, painful and debilitating symptoms, and a lowered quality of life. Thus, clinicians face ethical dilemmas when counseling their patients with SCD on whether to pursue HCT, which is currently the only potential cure for the disease, but which comes with a risk of mortality. -
Long-Term Outcomes Show Effectiveness of Reduced-Intensity HCT in MCL
February 2018Robinson SP, et al. Bone Marrow Transplant – Patients with mantle cell lymphoma (MCL) who have relapsed after an autologous transplant generally have a poor prognosis. Further treatment options include a second autologous transplant, an allogeneic transplant, or various alternative treatment strategies including novel agents. -
New Scoring Systems for Myelofibrosis Identify Risk Categories Predicting Survival
January 2018Guglielmelli P, et al. J Clin Oncol – Researchers analyzed 805 patients age ≤70 years with primary myelofibrosis to determine the variables predictive of overall survival (OS), then incorporated them into two prognostic scoring systems, one based on clinical and genetic data (MIPSS70) and the other with clinical and genetic data plus cytogenetic information (MIPSS70-plus). -
Personalized HCT Prognostic Risk Scores Identified for Children with Acute Leukemias
January 2018Bitan M, et al. Biol Blood Marrow Transplant – Researchers analyzed outcomes of children with acute myeloid (AML, n=790) and acute lymphoblastic leukemia (ALL, n=1,096) who survived for at least 1 year in remission after hematopoietic cell transplantation (HCT) have developed personalized long-term prognostic scoring systems for these patients. -
Early Detection of WT1 Minimal Residual Disease Predicts Outcomes in AML
December 2017Lambert J, et al. ASH abstract oral presentation, December 2017 – Using Wilms’ tumor gene (WT1) expression as a marker for minimal residual disease (MRD) in patients with acute myeloid leukemia (AML) is a powerful prognostic factor in treatment selection, according to a study of 713 patients with AML. -
Molecular MRD Detection by NGS Predicts Relapse and Survival in Adults with AML
December 2017Jongen-Lavrencic M, et al. ASH abstract oral presentation, December 2017 – A study of 482 adults with newly diagnosed AML has demonstrated that prospective molecular minimal residual disease (MRD) detection by next-generation sequencing (NGS) of residual leukemia defined by non-DTA mutations in complete remission (CR) is an independent predictor for relapse and survival. -
New Clinical Recommendations on the Role of HCT in Mature T Cell and NK/T Cell Lymphomas
December 2017Kharfan-Dabaja MA, et al. Biol Blood Marrow Transplant – New recommendations on the role of hematopoietic cell transplantation (HCT) for mature T cell and natural killer (NK)/T cell lymphomas outline clinical practice algorithms for 14 histological subtypes. -
Review: Racial and Ethnic Disparities in Patients with Hematologic Malignancies
December 2017Kirtane K, et al. Blood – This review focuses on a critical appraisal of the empirical research on racial and ethnic disparities in incidence, survival, outcomes, and enrollment in clinical trials. Reviewers discuss in detail four potential causes for disparities: biologic factors, health behaviors, individual factors, and structural barriers. -
New Composite Model Predicts Mortality Risk in AML
December 2017Sorror ML, et al. JAMA Oncol – Researchers have developed and validated a novel, risk-stratifying acute myeloid leukemia (AML) composite model (CM) incorporating comorbidities, age, and cytogenetic and molecular risk factors to predict mortality after initial therapy, which can guide clinicians in determining appropriate therapies for their patients with AML. -
Measuring Frailty Can Improve Existing Prognostic Tools
December 2017Hegde A, et al. Bone Marrow Transplant – Because frailty is prevalent in many patients pre- and post-transplant and is associated with age-independent adverse transplant outcomes, the authors of this review recommend incorporating a frailty assessment to optimize the predictive ability of existing pre-transplant assessment (PTA) tools across all age groups and particularly in elderly individuals. -
Prognostic Factors Identified for Optimal HCT Outcomes in Adults with FA
December 2017Bierings M, et al. Brit J Haematol – In this multicenter, retrospective study of adults with Fanconi anemia (FA) undergoing hematopoietic cell transplantation (HCT) between 1991 and 2014, researchers found that best outcomes were in patients who received bone marrow from an identical sibling with fludarabine in the conditioning regimen and transplanted after the year 2000. -
Ibrutinib Leads to Durable Responses in Steroid-Resistant Chronic GVHD
November 2017Miklos D, et al. Blood – Using the tyrosine kinase inhibitor ibrutinib to treat steroid-resistant chronic graft-versus-host disease (GVHD) can result in overall response rates of 67%, according to results of a multicenter, open-label phase 2 study of 42 transplant recipients. -
The Current Therapeutic Landscape of FLT3 Inhibitors
November 2017Levis M. Blood Advances – In this 15-minute audio presentation, Dr. Mark Levis of Johns Hopkins University reviews the current clinical status of the FLT3 inhibitors midostaurin, quizartinib, gilteritinib, sorafenib, and crenolanib in treating patients with FLT3-mutated acute myeloid leukemia. -
Auto-HCT Can Be Safe for Myeloma Patients with Renal Insufficiency
November 2017Mahindra A, et al. Bone Marrow Transplant – In this study, researchers analyzed autologous hematopoietic cell transplantation (HCT) outcomes in 1,492 patients with multiple myeloma (MM) and renal insufficiency (RI). -
Case Studies Outline Strategies for Long-Term Monitoring of Adult HCT Survivors
October 2017Bhatia S, et al. Blood – Using 4 case studies of hematopoietic cell transplantation (HCT) recipients, the authors of this “How I treat …” series in the journal Blood illustrate the challenges involved in providing long-term care for HCT survivors, and then propose several “best practice” models for risk-based screening. -
Intermediate-Risk ‘Triple-Negative’ AML at CR1: Improved Outcomes with HCT
October 2017Heidrich K, et al. Ann Oncol – For patients with intermediate-risk acute myeloid leukemia (AML) without FLT3-ITD, biallelic CEBPA, and NPM1 mutations (triple-negative AML) who achieve complete remission, hematopoietic cell transplantation (HCT) significantly improved treatment outcomes. -
Disease Risk Index is Important Prognostic Factor for Older HCT Patients
September 2017He F, et al. Biol Blood Marrow Transplant – A study of 196 patients age 60-75 years with hematologic malignancies undergoing reduced-intensity conditioning (RIC) hematopoietic cell transplantation (HCT) has found that the Disease Risk Index (DRI) score is a significant prognostic factor for post-transplant relapse, treatment failure and mortality. -
Older Patients with MDS: Uncovering Barriers to Allogeneic HCT
August 2017Getta BM, et al. Biol Blood Marrow Transplant – Only one-third of all patients with myelodysplastic syndromes (MDS) referred to an academic center undergo hematopoietic cell transplantation (HCT), according to a study of 362 patients with MDS treated at Memorial Sloan Kettering Cancer Center. -
Improved Outcomes and Increased Use of HCT in Patients ≥70 Years
August 2017Muffly L, et al. Blood – Overall and progression-free survival after allogeneic hematopoietic cell transplantation (HCT) in patients ≥70 years with hematologic malignancies increased significantly between 2000 and 2013, according to a multi-center study. -
Patients with MDS Responding to HMAs Have Better HCT Outcomes
July 2017Festuccia M, et al. Biol Blood Marrow Transplant – Patients with myelodysplastic syndromes (MDS) who undergo hematopoietic cell transplantation (HCT) while still responding to hypomethylating agents (HMAs) have lower rates of post-HCT relapse, according to a study of 125 patients with MDS. -
Comorbidity Scores are Prognostic of Overall Survival in Relapsed/Refractory AML
July 2017Middeke JM, et al. Biol Blood Marrow Transplant – Comorbidity evaluations can provide clinically useful prognostic information at the time of diagnosis of relapsed or refractory acute myeloid leukemia (AML), according to results of a phase II trial. -
Which Prognostic Factors Guide HCT Eligibility for Patients with Myelofibrosis?
June 2017Jain T, et al. Biol Blood Marrow Transplant - Authors discuss the prognostic factors that can guide clinicians to “select the right patients at the right time in their disease course to gain the most benefit from transplant.” -
New Pre-HCT Counseling Recommendations to Preserve Fertility
May 2017Dalle J-H, et al. Bone Marrow Transplant – In this report, a panel of transplant experts discuss state-of-the-art fertility preservation options available to adolescents and young adults who are considering hematopoietic cell transplantation (HCT). -
MRD is a ‘Powerful Predictor for Survival’ in Childhood ALL
April 2017Bader P, et al. Biol Blood Marrow Transplant – Measuring pre- and post-transplant minimal residual disease (MRD) “is a powerful predictor for survival” in pediatric acute lymphoblastic leukemia (ALL), according to a multi-center study of 648 patients. -
Allogeneic HCT is Feasible for Patients ≥70 Years
April 2017Sorror ML, et al. Biol Blood Marrow Transplant – New research presented at the BMT Tandem Meetings shows that patients aged 70 years and older can have comparable hematopoietic cell transplantation (HCT) outcomes to those of younger patients and that comorbidities and disease risks, not age, should be used to evaluate potential candidates. -
Updated Recommendations for Selecting HCT Candidates in Patients with MDS
March 2017de Witte T, et al. Blood –In this report from the European Society for Blood and Marrow Transplantation (EBMT), an international panel of experts present HCT treatment decision recommendations for patients with MDS. -
Updated ELN Recommendations on the Diagnosis and Management of AML in Adults
March 2017Döhner H, et al. Blood – The 2017 European LeukemiaNet (ELN) recommendations for diagnosis and management of acute myelogenous leukemia (AML) in adults includes updates based on several recent advances in AML, most notably advances in knowledge of the genomic landscape of the disease. -
Updated Guidelines Identify Factors in Selecting HCT Candidates in Patients with MDS
March 2017de Witte T, et al. Blood – In this report from the European Society for Blood and Marrow Transplantation (EBMT), an international panel of experts present treatment guidelines for patients with myelodysplastic syndromes (MDS). -
Depression Prior to HCT is Prognostic of Lower Survival, Higher Acute GVHD
March 2017El-Jawahri A, et al. Cancer – Pre-transplant depression requiring treatment significantly affected post-allogenic hematopoietic cell transplant (HCT) outcomes, including lower overall survival (OS) and higher risk of acute graft-versus-host disease (GVHD). -
Case Study Review: How I Treat Severe Aplastic Anemia
February 2017Bacigalupo A. Blood – In this installment of the “How I treat …” series in Blood, the author outlines his treatment algorithm for patients with severe aplastic anemia, using 2 case studies to illustrate the benefits and limitations of immunnosupressive therapy (IST) and hematopoietic cell transplantation (HCT). -
Multi-Center Study Identifies Biomarkers Associated with HCT Outcomes
February 2017Zaid MA, et al. Blood – This prospective, multi-center study confirmed the correlation of plasma-derived proteins, previously assessed only in single-center cohorts, with the potential to improve diagnosis, assess risk and manage complications after allogeneic HCT. -
Emerging Trends in Managing FLT3-Mutated AML
January 2017Pratz KW, et al. Blood – In this installment of the “How I treat …” series in Blood, the authors present four clinical case studies of patients with FLT3-mutated acute myeloid leukemia (AML) to illustrate their strategies to treat both newly diagnosed patients and those with relapsed or refractory disease. -
Results Show Non-Myeloablative Haploidentical Transplants Can Be Effective in Pediatric and Young Adult Patients
January 2017Klein OR, et al. Biol Blood Marrow Transplant – For pediatric and young adult patients who are ineligible for myeloablative transplant, non-myeloablative haploidentical bone marrow transplantation using post-transplant cyclophosphamide can be a safe and effective treatment, according to a single-center study of 40 transplant recipients. -
Tyrosine Kinase Inhibitor Improves Post-HCT Outcomes in Patients with AML
December 2016Brunner AM, et al. Br J Haematol – In a single-center study of consecutive adults with FLT3 - internal tandem duplication (ITD) acute myeloid leukemia (AML), 29 patients transplanted in first complete remission (CR1) who received post-transplant sorafenib had significantly better outcomes than 55 patients in a control cohort. -
Reclassified “Low Risk” Patients with MDS Achieve 58% 3-Year OS after HCT
December 2016Robin M, et al. Bone Marrow Transplant – An analysis of 246 myelodysplastic syndrome (MDS) patients with low or intermediate-1 disease according to the International Prognostic Scoring System (IPSS) found that the majority of these patients (76%) actually had intermediate or higher-risk disease according to the revised IPSS. -
High-Risk Patients with AML Undergoing Early HCT Have Improved Outcomes
December 2016Pagel JM, et al. ASH abstract oral presentation, December 2016 – In newly diagnosed adults with acute myeloid leukemia (AML), early identification of high-risk cytogenetics and HLA testing with an organized effort to identify a suitable allogeneic hematopoietic cell transplant (HCT) donor can lead to a higher transplant rate and better transplant outcomes, according to research presented at ASH. -
Adults with ALL Experience No Benefit of Consolidation Chemotherapy Prior to HCT
December 2016Bejanyan N, et al. ASH abstract oral presentation, December 2016 – Consolidation chemotherapy does not benefit adults with acute lymphoblastic leukemia (ALL) who have a readily available donor and who undergo myeloablative allogeneic hematopoietic cell transplantation (HCT) in first complete remission (CR1), according to research presented at ASH. -
Somatic Mutations Can Improve Transplant Prognostics in MDS
December 2016Rossi M, et al. ASH abstract oral presentation, December 2016 – In patients with myelodysplastic syndromes (MDS) or acute myeloid leukemia (AML) evolving from MDS (MDS/AML), somatic mutation information can be combined with revised International Prognostic Scoring System (IPSS-R) risk categorizations to predict post-transplant relapse risk, according to research presented at ASH. -
ASBMT Report: The Role of Allogeneic Transplant for CLL
November 2016Kharfan-Dabaja MA, et al. Biol Blood Marrow Transplant – Although allogeneic hematopoietic cell transplantation (HCT) is currently relegated to later stages of relapsed or refractory chronic lymphocytic leukemia (CLL), novel targeted therapies have altered clinical decision-making for the disease. -
MRD-Negativity in Relapsed/Refractory B-Cell ALL Leads to Better HCT Outcomes
October 2016Jabbour E, et al. Cancer – A study of 78 patients with relapsed/refractory B-cell acute lymphoblastic leukemia (ALL) found that minimal residual disease (MRD) assessment is predictive of survival after salvage treatment and subsequent HCT. -
MRD Accurately Predicts Survival in Patients with CLL
October 2016Kovacs G, et al. J Clin Oncol – Minimal residual disease (MRD) quantification results in improved progression-free survival (PFS) prediction in patients who achieve partial response (PR) and those who achieve complete remission (CR) after completion of chemotherapy or immunotherapy to treat chronic lymphocytic leukemia (CLL), according to combined results from two phase III studies. -
Prognostic Model Predicts HCT Outcomes in Patients with DLBCL
April 2016Fenske TS, et al. Br J Haematol – Researchers have developed a prognostic model to identify which patients with diffuse large B-cell lymphoma (DLBCL) who have failed a prior autologous transplant would best benefit from a subsequent allogeneic transplant. -
Disease Status, Not Cytogenetics, Predict HCT Outcome in Adult ALL
April 2016Aldoss I, et al. Biol Blood Marrow Transplant – This retrospective single-center study of 333 adults with acute lymphoblastic leukemia (ALL) has found that cytogenetic risk is not an independent predictor of allogeneic hematopoietic cell transplantation (HCT) outcome. -
Allo- Better than Auto-HCT for Early Relapsed or Refractory Follicular Lymphoma
March 2016Lunning MA, et al. Brit J Haematol – An analysis of 44 patients with early relapsed or refractory follicular lymphoma (FL) shows a significant difference in 3-year event-free survival (EFS) between allogeneic and autologous transplantation (80% vs. 42%, respectively; p<0.015), but only in patients with previous remission duration of ≤12 months. -
Higher Dose of Invariant Natural Killer T Cells Improves HCT Outcomes
March 2016Malard F, et al. Blood – Allogeneic HCT using peripheral blood stem cell (PBSC) grafts have better outcomes when the grafts contain large doses of invariant natural killer T (iNKT) cells, according to a single-center study of 80 consecutive patients transplanted between 2010 and 2013. -
The Role of Pre-Transplant Clonal Burden in Myelodysplastic Syndromes
March 2016Brierley CK, et al. Curr Opin Hematol – In this review, the authors review data on disease burden and transplant outcomes in myelodysplastic syndromes (MDS), and describe which MDS patients may benefit most from allogeneic hematopoietic cell transplantation (HCT). -
Review: HCT for Patients with AML in First Complete Remission
January 2016Cornelissen JJ, et al. Blood – In this review, part of a Blood journal special review series on acute myeloid leukemia (AML), the authors note that although the majority of patients AML enter remission upon induction chemotherapy, the risk of relapse is considerable and it varies greatly according to age and genetic subtype. -
Minimal Residual Disease Best Method to Define Complete Remission in AML
January 2016Araki D, et al. J Clin Oncol – Results of a study of 359 adults transplanted for acute myeloid leukemia (AML) indicate there is clinical relevance to minimal residual disease (MRD) that may lead to a better estimate of expected treatment outcomes. -
HCT Yields Best Outcomes in Patients ≥60 Years with AML
October 2015Versluis J, et al. Lancet Haematol – A study analyzing a series of four multi-center trials has shown significantly better 5-year overall survival for allogeneic hematopoietic cell transplantation (HCT) in patients aged 60 years and older with acute myeloid leukemia (AML) when compared with no and other post-remission therapies. -
Review: Indications for Allo-HCT in Primary Myelofibrosis
October 2015Kröger NM, et al. Leukemia – This review outlines consensus-based recommendations for consideration of allogeneic hematopoietic cell transplantation (HCT) in primary myelofibrosis. -
ASBMT Guidelines: Indications for Autologous and Allogeneic HCT
August 2015Majhail NS, et al. Biol Blood Marrow Transplant — These guidelines, issued by the American Society for Blood and Marrow Transplantation (ASBMT), identify established indications for autologous and allogeneic hematopoietic cell transplantation (HCT), and make recommendations on emerging indications where HCT may be beneficial. -
Review: Treating Early Relapsed and Refractory AML
August 2015Thol F, et al. Blood – In this installment of the “How I treat ...” series in Blood, the authors note that few patients with primary refractory or resistant acute myeloid leukemia (AML) can be cured with conventional salvage therapy, and they should therefore be evaluated for allogeneic hematopoietic cell transplantation (HCT). -
Validation of HCT Comorbidity Scoring: Improving Therapy Selection
July 2015Sorror ML, et al. Biol Blood Marrow Transplant — A large-scale prospective observational study of 8,115 allogeneic and 11,652 autologous transplants has validated the prognostic utility of the hematopoietic cell transplantation-comorbidity index (HCT-CI). -
Multi-Center Validation of the Prognostic Value of the HCT-Specific Comorbidity Index
May 2015ElSawy M, et al. Br J Haematol — This multi-center, retrospective analysis of 2,523 consecutive allogeneic transplants at five U.S. transplant centers has validated the prognostic value of the hematopoietic cell transplantation-specific comorbidity index (HCT-CI) to predict the risk of non-relapse mortality (NRM) and overall survival (OS). -
Allogeneic HCT for Acute Biphenotypic Leukemias
April 2015Munker R, et al. Oral presentation, BMT Tandem Meetings — New research presented at the BMT Tandem Meetings on transplants in patients with acute biphenotypic leukemias (ABiL) has found that 3-year overall survival (OS) in these patients is 65%, leading researchers to conclude that “allogeneic HCT is a valid treatment option for patients with ABiL and should be explored in patients without significant comorbidities.” -
Review: How I Treat the Older Patient with AML
January 2015Ossenkopple G, et al. Blood – In this installment of the “How I treat” series in Blood, the authors discuss the highly heterogeneous clinical biology of acute myeloid leukemia (AML) among patients and how those variations are relevant for prognosis and treatment choice.