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The prognosis of 11q23/KMT2A-rearranged (KMT2A-r) acute leukemia (AL) after allogeneic hematopoietic stem cell transplantation (allo-HSCT) is poor. Minimal residual disease (MRD) is an important prognostic factor for relapse. Thus, we aimed to identify the evolution of KMT2A before and after allo-HSCT and the efficacy of preemptive immunotherapies for KMT2A-r AL patients receiving allo-HSCT. KMT2A expression was determined through TaqMan-based RQ-PCR technology. Preemptive immunotherapies included interferon-α and donor lymphocyte infusion. We collected 1751 bone marrow samples from 177 consecutive KMT2A-r AL patients. Pre-HSCT KMT2A positivity was correlated with post-HSCT KMT2A positivity (correlation coefficient=0.371, P<0.001). The rates of achieving KMT2A negativity after allo-HSCT were 96.6%, 92.9%, and 68.8% in the pre-HSCT low-level group (>0, <0.1%), intermediate-level group (≥ 0.1%, <1%), and high-level group (≥1%), respectively. The rates of regaining KMT2A positivity after allo-HSCT were 7.7%, 35.7%, 38.5%, and 45.5% for the pre-HSCT KMT2A-negative, low-level, intermediate-level, and high-level groups, respectively (P<0.001). The 4-year cumulative incidence of relapse after allo-HSCT was as high as 53.7% in the pre-HSCT KMT2A expression ≥ 0.1% group, which was compared to the KMT2A-negative group (15.1%) and KMT2A <0.1% group (31.2%). The clinical outcomes of patients with post-HSCT KMT2A positivity were poorer than those of patients with persistent KMT2A negativity. Although post-HSCT preemptive immunotherapies might help to achieve KMT2A negativity, the long-term efficacy was unsatisfactory. Thus, pre-HSCT KMT2A positivity was significantly associated with post-HSCT KMT2A positivity. The clinical outcomes of patients with post-HSCT KMT2A positivity were poor, which might not be overcome by commonly used immunotherapies. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Cytomegalovirus (CMV) can cause end-organ diseases including pneumonia, gastroenteritis, retinitis, and encephalitis in hematopoietic stem cell transplantation recipients. Potential differences among different CMV diseases remain uncertain. This study aimed to compare the clinical characteristics, risk factors, and mortality among different CMV diseases. A retrospective nested case-control study was performed based on a cohort of 3862 patients who underwent haploidentical hematopoietic stem cell transplantation at a single-center. CMV diseases occurred in 113 (2.92%) of 3862 haplo-HSCT recipients, including probable CMV pneumonia (CMVP, n = 34), proven CMV gastroenteritis (CMVG, n = 34), CMV retinitis (CMVR, n = 31), probable CMV encephalitis (CMVE, n = 7), and disseminated CMV disease (Di-CMVD, n = 7). Most (91.2%) cases of CMVG developed within 100 days, while most (90.3%) cases of CMVR were late onset. Refractory CMV infection and CMV viral load at different levels were associated with an increased risk of CMVP, CMVG, and CMVR. Compared with patients without CMV diseases, significantly higher non-relapse mortality at 1 year after transplantation was observed in patients with CMVP and CMVR, rather than CMVG. Patients with CMVP, Di-CMVD, and CMVE had higher overall mortality after diagnosis than that of patients with CMVG and CMVR (61.7%, 57.1%, 40.0% vs 27.7%, 18.6%, P = 0.001). In conclusion, the onset time, viral dynamics, and mortality differ among different CMV diseases. The mortality of CMV diseases remains high, especially for CMVP, Di-CMVD, and CMVE. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

To explore the incidence, risk factors, and outcomes of central nervous system (CNS) relapse after allogeneic hematopoietic stem cell transplantation (allo-HSCT) for acute lymphoblastic leukemia (ALL) and to compare the differences in CNS relapse between haploidentical donor HSCT (HID-HSCT) and HLA-identical sibling donor HSCT (ISD-HSCT). We performed a retrospective nested case-control study on patients with CNS relapse after allo-HSCT. The cumulative incidence of CNS relapse was 4.06% after allo-HSCT in ALL, with a significantly poor prognosis. The incidence was 3.91% and 5.36% in HID-HSCT and ISD-HSCT, respectively (p = .227). Among the patients with CNS relapse, the overall survival (OS) at 3 years was 56.2 ± 6.8% in the HID-HSCT subgroup and 76.9 ± 10.2% in the ISD-HSCT subgroup (p = .176). The 3-year cumulative incidence of systemic relapse was also comparable between the two subgroups (HID-HSCT, 40.6 ± 7.4%; ISD-HSCT, 13.3 ± 8.7%, respectively, p = .085). Younger age (p = .045), T-ALL (p = .035), hyperleukocytosis at diagnosis (p < .001), advanced disease stage at transplant (p < .001), pre-HSCT CNS involvement (p < .001), and absence of chronic graft vs host disease (cGVHD) (p < .001) were independent risk factors for CNS relapse after allo-HSCT. In conclusion, CNS relapse was a significant complication after allo-HSCT in ALL and was associated with poor prognosis. The incidences and outcomes were comparable between HID-HSCT and ISD-HSCT. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Hepatic sinusoidal obstruction syndrome (SOS) has been rarely studied after haploidentical donor (HID) allogeneic hematopoietic stem cell transplantation (allo-HSCT). We performed a retrospective multicentre study on patients with SOS after allo-HSCT in China. The incidence, risk factors, and outcomes were compared between HID HSCT and matched related donor (MRD) HSCT. SOS developed in 0.4% of patients (HIDs: 0.4%, MRDs: 0.5%, p = 0.952) at a median time of 21.50 days (range, 1-55) after allo-HSCT (HIDs: 24 days, MRDs: 20 days, p = 0.316). For patients diagnosed with SOS, the 2-year cumulative incidence of relapse was 22.7% and 22.4% in patients receiving HID and MRD transplantation, respectively (p = 0.584). Overall survival (OS) at 2 year was 10.4% and 38.5% in the two groups (p = 0.113). The transplant-related mortality (TRM) at 100 days was 60.9% in the HID group and 38.5% in the MRD group (p = 0.178). According to the multivariate analyses, significant independent risk factors for the occurrence of SOS were delayed platelet engraftment (p = 0.007) and advanced disease status at the time of HSCT (p = 0.009). The outcomes of SOS after HID HSCT are similar to those after MRD HSCT. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Haploidentical hematopoietic stem cell transplant (haplo-HSCT) is an upfront and effective therapy for hematology patients, but it usually has many complications, such as neurological complications. As one of the neurological complications following haplo-HSCT, immune-mediated demyelinating diseases of the central nervous system (CNS) seriously affect a patient's quality of life. However, the incidence, risk factors, and pathogenesis of CNS demyelination are not very well understood. Thirty of the 1526 patients (1.96%) suffered from CNS demyelination. In univariate analysis, we found that blood-brain barrier (BBB) permeability and the CSF IgG synthesis index (IgG-Syn) were related to the occurrence of CNS demyelination (p < 0.05). In a multivariate analysis, the IgG-Syn (OR = 1.017, 95% CI 1.003-1.031, p = 0.019) and CSF anti-myelin oligodendrocyte glycoprotein antibody (MOG.Ab) (OR = 12.059, 95% CI 1.141-127.458, p = 0.038) were independently associated with the onset of CNS demyelination. We also studied the possible pathogenesis of CNS demyelination. Immune reconstitution (the cell proportions of CD19+ B cells, CD3+ T cells, and CD4+ T cells); the counts of leucocytes, lymphocytes, monocytes, and platelets; and the levels of immunoglobulins A, G, and M 30, 60, and 90 days after HSCT showed no significant differences between CNS demyelination and no demyelination (p > 0.05). The probabilities of overall survival showed no significant differences between patients with and without demyelination (p > 0.05). Only four deaths in 30 patients, but bringing projected survival to less than 20%.We imply that IgG-Syn and CSF MOG. Ab may be associated with the onset of CNS demyelination during 2 weeks of neurological symptoms in patients with brain or spinal cord MRI abnormality. Immune reconstitution may not be the pathogenesis of CNS demyelination. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

We aimed to evaluate the treatments, particularly the role of corticosteroids, in patients with late-onset hemorrhagic cystitis (LOHC) after allogeneic hematopoietic stem cell transplantation (allo-HSCT). One hundred and sixty-three consecutive patients who underwent non-T-cell-depleted allo-HSCT and met the criterion of LOHC after allo-HSCT were enrolled in this study. The median time from allo-HSCT to the occurrence of LOHC was 29 (range, 4-155) days. Pathogens identified in blood and/or urine samples from 143 patients were mostly viruses. All of the patients with LOHC received intravenous fluid hydration, alkalization, and forced diuresis, of which 2 patients achieved complete remission (CR) after these treatments. The remaining 161 patients received anti-infection therapies and 71 achieved CR after the therapies. Corticosteroids were additionally applied to 83 out of 90 patients who did not achieve CR after anti-infection therapies, and 88.0% (n = 73) of them showed a grade 3 to 4 LOHC at the beginning of corticosteroid therapy. Thirty-five patients showed an immediate response (CR or downgraded at least one grade) within 1 week after the beginning of the corticosteroid therapy. Sixty-four patients (77.1%) achieved CR after corticosteroid therapy, and the median period from the beginning of corticosteroid therapy to CR was 17 days. Thus, we observed that viruses were the most common pathogens in LOHC after allo-HSCT and that anti-infection therapies were critical. For patients not showing a satisfactory response to anti-infection therapies, additional corticosteroid therapy may help to achieve CR. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background: Acupuncture can not only be used for well-known diseases, but also for so-called modern lifestyle-related diseases. Using innovative methods like e.g. new analyses of heart rate variability (HRV), it is also possible to investigate diseases like burnout syndrome, ie., qi deficiency in Chinese medicine (CM).Objective: The main object of this research protocol is to perform research on the relationship of burnout syndrome and heart rate (HR) and HRV.Methods: A total of 175 patients with burnout syndrome (qi deficiency syndrome) in five groups and 35 healthy volunteers will be investigated. Based on random numbers generated by computer and concealed in opaque envelops, the patients will be assigned to four acupuncture groups using Zusanli (ST 36) acupuncture stimulation, Guanyuan (CV4) acupuncture stimulation, both points, and both points with Streitberger device respectively, and a moxibustion group using both points mentioned above, with 35 cases in each group. Altogether four different experiments are planned. Experiment 1 includes 70 subjects and is a comparison between a burnout group and a control group (healthy volunteers). The evaluation parameters are different scores and indices of HR and HRV. Experiment 2 includes 140 subjects and compares the efficacy of different acupuncture points. In experiment 3 (105 subjects), acupuncture and moxibustion should be compared to healthy volunteers. Experiment 4 (70 subjects) investigates the long-term therapeutic effects of acupuncture and moxibustion on the scores of qi deficiency and HR/HRV in qi deficiency patients. In both the acupuncture and moxibustion groups, a total of 10 treatments will be performed.Conclusions: The joint research aims at the scientific evaluation of CM, mainly in the field of HRV. This parameter could be a very good indicator of the state of health and can be inflfluenced by different acupuncture methods, as shown in the past. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The efficacy of donor lymphocyte infusion (DLI) without chemotherapy was investigated and compared with that of chemotherapy prior to DLI (Chemo-DLI) in patients who were minimal residual disease (MRD)-positive after allogeneic hematopoietic stem cell transplantation (HSCT). We enrolled 115 consecutive patients who received either DLI (n = 20) or Chemo-DLI (n = 95) during the same period. For each DLI recipient, three recipients matched for age at the HSCT, underlying diseases, and the year of the HSCT were randomly selected from the Chemo-DLI cohort (n = 60). The 2-year cumulative incidence of severe acute graft-versus-host disease (GVHD) and chronic GVHD was comparable between the groups. Fifteen (75.0%) and 47 (78.3%) patients in the DLI and Chemo-DLI groups turned MRD-negative, respectively. The 2-year cumulative incidences of relapse and non-relapse mortality after intervention were 30.7 versus 39.6% (P = 0.582) and 10.3 versus 6.0% (P = 0.508) in the DLI and Chemo-DLI groups, respectively. The 2-year probabilities of disease-free, overall, and GVHD-free/relapse-free survival after preemptive intervention were 58.9 versus 54.3% (P = 0.862), 69.3 versus 78.1% (P = 0.361), and 44.4 versus 35.1% (P = 0.489) in the DLI and Chemo-DLI groups, respectively. In multivariate analysis, the intervention method did not significantly influence the clinical outcomes. In summary, preemptive DLI alone may be effective for patients who are MRD-positive and may be a potential alternative for patients who refuse or are unable to receive Chemo-DLI after HSCT. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Intracranial hemorrhage (ICH) is one of the most life-threatening neurological complications after allogeneic hematopoietic stem cell transplantation. Although cerebral complications and its causes after allo-HSCT are well documented, assessment of the incidence and risk factors of intracranial hemorrhage following allo-HSCT are less discussed. A nested case-control study was conducted involving 160 subjects drawn from 2169 subjects who underwent HSCT at Peking University People's Hospital between 2004 and 2014. Thirty-two patients (1.5 %) with ICH were identified, and 128 controls were matched for age, gender, transplantation type, and time of transplantation. Intracranial hemorrhage was identified by CT scan and/or MRI by searching hospital records. Among the 32 ICH patients, 27 (82.9 %) developed intraparenchymal hemorrhages (IPH), 2 cases (5.7 %) suffered subdural hematomas (SDH), and 3 cases (8.6 %) had multiple hemorrhage lesions in the brain parenchyma. The median time of appearance for cerebral hemorrhages was 147.5 days. Multivariate analysis showed that systemic infections (hazard ratio 2.882, 95 % confidence interval 1.231-6.746), platelet count (5.894, 1.145-30.339), and fibrinogen levels (3.611, 1.528-8.532) were independent risk factors for intracranial hemorrhage among HSCT patients. The cumulative survival rate in the intracranial hemorrhage and control groups were 43.3 and 74.7 % (P = .001), respectively. Intracranial hemorrhage is associated with high mortality and a decreased overall survival rate. Systemic infections, platelet count, and fibrinogen levels were individual independent risk factors. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This study investigated the efficacy of minimal residual disease (MRD) monitoring and MRD-directed preemptive immunotherapy in high-risk myelodysplastic syndrome (MDS) patients who received allogeneic hematopoietic stem cell transplantation (HSCT). MRD assessment consisted of Wilms' tumor gene 1 (WT1) detection with PCR and leukemia-associated immunophenotypic pattern examination with multiparameter flow cytometry (FCM). Post-HSCT, 31 patients were positive for WT1, and 8, for FCM; positivity for WT1 (18.6 vs. 6.1 %, P = 0.040) or FCM (62.5 vs. 3.6 %, P < 0.001) indicated a higher 2-year relapse rate. Twenty-one patients met our combined criteria for MRD, and the presence of MRD was associated with a higher 2-year relapse rate (27.3 vs. 4.5 %, P = 0.003). Preferentially expressed antigen of melanoma (PRAME) expression alone was not an appropriate MRD marker; however, it suggested that the MRD-positive patients may fail to respond to preemptive immunotherapy. In patients positive for both PRAME and MRD, the relapse rate was 60 % despite preemptive immunotherapy. Multivariate analysis confirmed the association between the increased relapse rate and positivity for both PRAME and MRD (hazard ratio = 42.8, P = 0.001). MRD monitoring predicted relapse in high-risk MDS post-HSCT patients, and PRAME- and MRD-positive patients did not benefit from preemptive immunotherapy. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Prolonged isolated thrombocytopenia is a common complication after allogeneic hematopoietic stem cell transplantation (allo-HSCT), which is associated with a poor prognosis. This study aimed to investigate the pathogenesis of prolonged isolated thrombocytopenia (PT). We analysed the expression of CX3CR1 on CD4 and CD8 T cells in bone marrow (BM) and peripheral blood (PB) at +90 days from allo-HSCT recipients with or without PT by flow cytometry analyses. We then determined the megakaryocytes ploidy distributions, apoptosis rate and Fas expression of recipients with or without PT in vitro directly or after depleting CD8 T cells or adding purified autologous CD8 T cells to CD8 T-dep MNCs. We found that the percentage of CD8 T cells in BM was higher in the patients with PT than in the controls. The elevated expression of the CX3CR1 was associated with PT. There was a marked increase in the percentage of low ploidy megakaryocytes in the recipients with PT. The depletion of CD8 T cells increased the apoptosis of megakaryocytes and decreased the expression of Fas, which could be corrected by re-adding purified autologous CD8 T cells. The increase of CD8 T cells and CD8/CX3CR1 T cells in BM at +90 days were independent risk factors for PT according to multivariate analysis. Our data implied that the recruitment of CD8 T cells into BM might explain the suppression of megakaryocyte apoptosis through the elevated expression of CX3CR1 in PT after allo-HSCT. CX3CR1 might be a novel treatment target in recipients with PT. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Primary poor graft function (PGF) is a severe complication after allogeneic stem cell transplantation (SCT). The incidence, risk factors, and outcomes of PGF have not been well described, especially in the haploidentical SCT setting. We retrospectively reviewed patients who received haploidentical SCT at Peking University Institute of Hematology between January 1, 2011, and December 31, 2012. PGF was defined as persistent neutropenia (≤0.5 × 10 L), thrombocytopenia (platelets ≤20 × 10 L), and/or hemoglobin ≤70 g L after engraftment with hypocellular bone marrow and full donor chimerism, without concurrent graft-versus-host disease or disease relapse. Incidence was calculated from all patients. Of the 464 total patients, 26 (5.6 %) developed primary PGF. The risk factors were analyzed and compared with control patients with good graft function who were selected using the case-pair method. Finally, 104 patients were selected as a control group according to the matching conditions: (1) the type (acute leukemia, myelodysplastic syndrome (MDS), chronic myelogenous leukemia (CML)) and status (standard risk, high risk) of underlying disease, (2) sex, (3) year in which the transplantation was received, and (4) a 1:4 ratio of case-control. No factors were found to be associated with primary PGF. Compared to cases with good graft function, patients with primary PGF experienced poor overall survival (34.6 vs. 82.7 %, p < 0.001). Of the 26 primary PGF patients, only nine achieved hematopoietic recovery and survived. In conclusion, primary PGF is a rare but life-threatening complication after haploidentical SCT, and effective therapies need to be explored. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Delayed platelet engraftment (DPE) is a common complication following allogeneic hematopoietic stem cell transplantation (allo-HSCT). This phenomenon is also a predictor of increased treatment-related mortality and poor survival. Therefore, therapies that promote platelet engraftment to prevent DPE are needed. This prospective randomized controlled trial was designed to investigate whether recombinant human thrombopoietin (rhTPO), administered subcutaneously at a daily dose of 15,000 U from the first day after transplantation, promotes platelet engraftment after haploidentical HSCT. The cumulative incidence of platelet engraftment (platelet recovery to ≥20 × 10/L without transfusion support for seven consecutive days) on day 60 post-transplantation was significantly higher in the rhTPO group ( n = 60) than in the control group ( n = 60) (91.7 ± 3.8 % vs. 74.5 ± 5.8 %, P = 0.041). Additionally, the number of platelet transfusions from day 14 to day 60 was significantly lower in the rhTPO group than in the control group (4 ± 5 vs. 7 ± 9 Units, P = 0.018). No severe adverse effects were observed, with a median follow-up duration of 256 days (range, 48-586 days). The incidences of acute graft-versus-host disease (GVHD), chronic GVHD, and cytomegalovirus viremia and the probabilities of overall survival and disease-free survival did not differ between the two groups. A multivariate analysis of all patients revealed that regardless of assignment to the rhTPO group or the control group (hazard ratio (HR) = 1.514; 95 % CI (1.024-2.238); P = 0.038), the number of total infused CD34 cells (HR = 1.304; 95 % CI (1.148-1.482); P < 0.001) and slower neutrophil engraftment (HR = 2.777; 95 % CI (1.841-4.189); P < 0.001) were associated with platelet engraftment. In conclusion, rhTPO promotes platelet engraftment and safely reduces the requirement for platelet transfusion in patients after unmanipulated haploidentical HSCT. This trial was registered with the Chinese Clinical Trial Registry () as ChiCTR-TRC-11001774. . [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The modified busulfan-cyclophosphamide (mBuCy) regimen, combined with hydroxyurea, cytarabine and semustine, is the most frequently used myeloablative conditioning regimen for allogeneic hematopoietic stem cell transplantation in our unit. It is unknown, however, whether fludarabine can be substituted for cyclophosphamide in the mBuCy regimen. We carried out a prospective study to compare modified busulfan-fludarabine (mBuF) with mBuCy, aiming to reduce the treatment-related mortality, with non-inferiority of other outcomes. The mBuCy regimen consisted of hydroxyurea 80 mg/kg on day −10; cytarabine 2 g/m 2 on day −9; busulfan 9.6 mg/kg, intravenously on day −8 through –6; and cyclophosphamide 3.6 g/m 2 on day −5 and −4 and semustine 250 mg/m 2 on day −3. In the mBuF regimen, cyclophosphamide was substituted with fludarabine 30 mg/m 2 through day −5 to −1. Mobilized blood and marrow stem cells were collected from HLA-matched siblings. The trial was suspended due to a tendency of higher incidence of severe pneumonia in the mBuF arm, in which 105 patients were enrolled. After follow-up for another 22 months, a significantly increased incidence of severe pneumonia (31.1 %) was observed in the mBuF arm (11.6 % in mBuCy). This finding suggests that it is uncertain whether it is appropriate to substitute fludarabine for cyclophosphamide under any drug combination. This study was registered at www.chictr.org/cn under identifier ChiCTR-TRC-09000470. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Experience using olverembatinib as maintenance therapy in patients with Philadelphia chromosome–positive acute lymphoblastic leukemia (Ph+ ALL) after allogeneic hematopoietic cell transplantation (allo-HCT) is limited. We retrospectively collected data from 26 patients with Ph+ ALL who received only olverembatinib as maintenance therapy after allo-HCT. Olverembatinib was administered as prophylaxis in 18 patients (69.2%), and preemptively in 8 patients (30.8%). The median time of olverembatinib initiation after transplantation was 2.5 months (range, 1-7.3). The median starting dose of olverembatinib was 35 mg qod (range, 15–40). The median duration of olverembatinib treatment was 12.5 months (range, 6–23). Olverembatinib maintenance treatment was discontinued in 8 patients (8/26,30%), seven stopped the drug for a long-lasting BCR-ABL1 negativity and 1 for recurrent fever associated with the drug. BCR-ABL1 turned positive in 3 patients in 2, 3 and 6 months after discontinuation. During olverembatinib treatment, three patients developed grade ≥ 3 hematologic side effects, which resolved with dose interruption or dose reduction. The median follow-up time after allo-HCT were 17.75 months (range 7–31). The hematologic relapse rate was 7.7% (2/26), with no event in the preemptive group. The 3-year probability of overall survival and relapse free survival after allo-HCT was 91.7% and 79.1%, respectively. Only one patient in prophylaxis group died of central central nervous system (CNS) relapse. Thus, our data suggest that olverembatinib is effective and safe as maintenance treatment in patients with Ph+ ALL who underwent allo-HSCT. The main adverse effect was hematologic toxicity, which was tolerated. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]