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This retrospective report presents the outcomes and adverse events (AEs) observed in 73 patients aged 60 years or older diagnosed with Philadelphia Chromosome-negative Acute Lymphoblastic Leukemia (Ph-negative ALL) treated with a pediatric-inspired protocol incorporating either Pegylated (PEG-ASP) or Native Asparaginase (EC-ASP). Notably, 61% of patients experienced AEs of Grade III-IV severity. The most prevalent AEs included thrombosis (35.6%), febrile neutropenia (38.4%), and transaminitis (34.2%). AEs did not translate into significant differences concerning overall survival, leukemia-free survival, or early mortality. Furthermore, we observed a reduction in early mortality rates (11% vs. 20%) and an increase in median overall survival (54 vs. 48 months) compared to our previous data. These findings suggest that the utilization of a pediatric-inspired chemotherapy protocol, with ASP, is an effective and well-tolerated therapeutic option for older patients with Ph-negative ALL. However, it emphasizes the importance of diligent monitoring and close follow-up throughout treatment. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

We hypothesized that "real world" patients with DLBCL differ from clinical trial populations with trial eligibility excluding the poor-outcome patients who might benefit most from novel therapies. A total of 329 patients were eligible for our study, with 14 patients excluded for PCNSL, 29 patients for lymphoma diagnosis not meeting WHO criteria, 17 patients who died within 22 days of the diagnosis, 27 patients with previously treated lymphoma, and 50 patients with transformed lymphoma. To the Editor, Clinical trials are the gold standard by which therapies in oncology are evaluated and form the basis for approval of novel therapies. Recently, Khurana et al. showed that in a cohort of DLBCL patients between 9% and 24% would have ineligible for major clinical trials in lymphoma based on baseline laboratory abnormalities, with 15.9% excluded from GOYA [[11]]. [Extracted from the article]