Adapting the Fitness Criteria for Non-Intensive Treatments in Older Patients with Acute Myeloid Leukemia to the Use of Venetoclax-Hypomethylating Agents Combination-Practical Considerations from the Real-Life Experience of the Hematologists of the Rete Ematologica Lombarda.

A retrospective survey was conducted in hematologic centres of the Rete Ematologica Lombarda (REL) on 529 older AML patients seen between 2020-2022. Compared to 2008-2016, the use of intensive chemotherapy (ICT) decreased from 40% to 18.1% and of hypomethylating agents (HMAs) from 19.5% to 13%, whereas the combination of Venetoclax/HMA, initially not available, increased from 0% to 36.7%. Objective treatment-specific fitness criteria proposed by SIE/SIES/GITMO in 2013 allow an appropriate choice between ICT and HMAs by balancing their efficacy and toxicity. Venetoclax/HMA, registered for patients unfit to ICT, has a unique toxicity profile because of prolonged granulocytopenia and increased infectious risk. Aiming at defining specific fitness criteria for the safe use of Venetoclax/HMA, a preliminary investigation was conducted among expert REL hematologists, asking for modifications of SIE/SIES/GITMO criteria they used to select candidates for Venetoclax/HMA. While opinions among experts varied, a general consensus emerged on restricting SIE/SIES/GITMO criteria for ICT-unfit patients to an age limit of 80-85, cardiac function > 40%, and absence of recurrent lung infections, bronchiectasis, or exacerbating COPD. Also, the presence of an adequate caregiver was considered mandatory. Such expert opinions may be clinically useful and may be considered when treatment-specific fitness criteria are updated to include Venetoclax/HMA.

Myeloid neoplasms post PARP inhibitors for ovarian cancer.

The incidence of myeloid neoplasms following treatment with poly (ADP-ribose) polymerase inhibitors (PARPi) in patients with ovarian cancer has been gradually increasing over the last few years. The cumulative exposure to PARPi and the improved overall survival of patients with ovarian cancer may represent key underlying explanations behind such trend. Fortunately, the earlier introduction of PARPi in the frontline setting reduces the risk of developing secondary myeloid neoplasms. The etiopathogenesis is still unclear but is likely to be multifactorial. The first 2 years of PARPi exposure seem to be the critical window for the onset of myeloid neoplasms post PARPi, with persistent cytopenia recognized as an early warning sign. Despite intensive treatment strategies, the outcome remains poor. There is an unmet clinical need to learn how to minimize risk, make an early diagnosis, and manage myeloid neoplasms post PARPi. First, decision making regarding the optimal maintenance treatment should avoid a 'PARPi-for-all' strategy. PARPi should be used cautiously in cases of high baseline risk for myeloid neoplasms and/or patients who are less likely to have a benefit. Active surveillance, accurate differential diagnosis, and prompt hematological referral are key management pillars. This review discusses what is known on this emerging issue as well as unresolved questions.

AVALON: The Italian cohort study on real-life efficacy of hypomethylating agents plus venetoclax in newly diagnosed or relapsed/refractory patients with acute myeloid leukemia.

BACKGROUND: Venetoclax in combination with hypomethylating agents (HMA) is revolutionizing the therapy of acute myeloid leukemia (AML). However, evidence on large sets of patients is lacking, especially in relapsed or refractory leukemia. METHODS: AVALON is a multicentric cohort study that was conducted in Italy on patients with AML who received venetoclax-based therapies from 2015 to 2020. The study was approved by the ethics committee of the participating institution and was conducted in accordance with the Declaration of Helsinki. The effectiveness and toxicity of venetoclax + HMA in 190 (43 newly diagnosed, 68 refractory, and 79 relapsed) patients with AML are reported here. RESULTS: In the newly diagnosed AML, the overall response rate and survival confirmed the brilliant results demonstrated in VIALE-A. In the relapsed or refractory AML, the combination demonstrated a surprisingly complete remission rate (44.1% in refractory and 39.7% in relapsed evaluable patients) and conferred to treated patients a good expectation of survival. Toxicities were overall manageable, and most incidents occurred in the first 60 days of therapy. Infections were confirmed as the most common nonhematologic adverse event. CONCLUSIONS: Real-life data show that the combination of venetoclax and HMA offers an expectation of remission and long-term survival to elderly, newly diagnosed patients, and to relapsed or chemoresistant AML, increasing the chance of cure through a different mechanism of action. The venetoclax + HMA combination is expected to constitute the base for triplet combinations and integration of target therapies. Our data contribute to ameliorate the understanding of venetoclax + HMA effectiveness and toxicities in real life.

Hematological disorders after salvage PARPi treatment for ovarian cancer: Cytogenetic and molecular defects and clinical outcomes.

Inhibitors of poly(ADP-ribose) polymerase (PARPi) are increasingly employed as salvage therapy in epithelial ovarian cancer (EOC), but cytotoxic drug exposure along with PARP inhibition may favor development of hematological disorders. In our study, of 182 women with EOC treated with PARPi, 16 (8.7%) developed therapy-related myeloid neoplasms (t-MNs), with 12 cases of myelodysplasia and 4 of acute myeloid leukemia. All experienced persistent cytopenia after PARPi discontinuation. Seven patients had del(5q)/-5 and/or del(7q)/-7, nine had a complex karyotype and TP53 mutations, recently reported as risk factor for t-MNs in EOC post-PARPi, were found in 12 out of 13 tested patients. Four patients had a rapid and fatal outcome, one had stable disease, eleven underwent induction therapy, followed by allogeneic hematopoietic cell transplantation in seven. Three of these 11 patients experienced refractory disease, and 8 had complete remission. During a 6.8 months (range 2.3-49) median observation time, 3 out of 16 patients were alive, with one surviving patient free of both solid and hematological tumors. Ten patients died because of leukemia, two because of transplant-related events, one from heart failure. Five more patients experienced persistent cell blood count abnormalities following PARPi discontinuation, without reaching MDS diagnostic criteria. A customized Myelo-panel showed clonal hematopoiesis in all five patients. These findings confirm the actual risk of t-MNs in EOC patients after chemotherapy and prolonged PARPi therapy. The management of these patients is complex and outcomes are extremely poor. Careful diagnostic procedures are strongly recommended whenever unusual cytopenias develop in patients receiving PARPi therapy.

Crosslinked Chitosan Binder for Sustainable Aqueous Batteries.

The increased percentage of renewable power sources involved in energy production highlights the importance of developing systems for stationary energy storage that satisfy the requirements of safety and low costs. Na ion batteries can be suitable candidates, specifically if their components are economic and safe. This study focuses on the development of aqueous processes and binders to prepare electrodes for sodium ion cells operating in aqueous solutions. We demonstrated the feasibility of a chitosan-based binder to produce freestanding electrodes for Na ion cells, without the use of organic solvents and current collectors in electrode processing. To our knowledge, it is the first time that water-processed, freestanding electrodes are used in aqueous Na ion cells, which could also be extended to other types of aqueous batteries. This is a real breakthrough in terms of sustainability, taking into account low risks for health and environment and low costs.

HHV8-Negative Effusion-Based Large B Cell Lymphoma Arising in Chronic Myeloid Leukemia Patients under Dasatinib Treatment: A Report of Two Cases.

Tyrosine kinase inhibitors (TKIs) are the treatment of choice for BCR-ABL1-positive chronic myeloid leukemia (CML). Although TKIs have substantially improved prognosis of CML patients, their use is not free of adverse effects. Dasatinib is a second generation TKI frequently associated with pleural effusion in up to 33% of patients. This results in symptoms as dyspnea, cough and chest pain that may require therapy discontinuation. In the present report, we describe two exceptional cases of HHV8-negative large B-cell effusion-based lymphoma (EBL) confined to the pleura, incidentally, diagnosed in patients presenting with dasatinib-related pleural effusion. One patient (case 1) is alive and is in remission at 17 months from large B-cell EBL diagnosis while unfortunately the other patient (case 2) died of progressive disease and COVID-19 pneumonia 16 months from large B-cell EBL diagnosis. These cases raise concern about a possible association between large B-cell EBL and dasatinib, and the different clinical outcome of the two cases poses a challenge in treatment decision. For this reason, we strongly recommend cytological investigation in patients with persistent/relapsing pleural effusion under dasatinib, primarily to validate its possible association with lymphoma development and to improve the knowledge about this entity.

Clinical presentation, diagnosis and management of therapy-related hematological disorders in women with epithelial ovarian cancer treated with chemotherapy and poly-ADP-ribose polymerase inhibitors: A single-center experience.

We investigated the occurrence and management of therapy-related hematological disorders (tr-HDs) in women with epithelial ovarian cancer (EOC) exposed to poly-ADP-ribose polymerase inhibitors (PARPi), after previous chemotherapy. We analyzed 130 consecutive EOC patients treated with PARPi at the European Institute of Oncology, Milan. In line with the literature, overall survival of the entire population was 37% at 5.5 years (89% were advanced stages). Cell blood counts were collected prior to start PARPi, at each new cycle and at monthly intervals. Patients displaying persistent and/or marked hematological abnormalities underwent bone marrow evaluation, with cytogenetic and molecular analysis. Nine patients (6,9%) developed tr-HDs, after a median 22.8 months of PARPi exposure. Two patients died early and could not be treated. Two patients have no indication for active treatment and are presently under close hematological monitoring. Five patients underwent chemotherapy followed, in three cases, by allogeneic hematopoietic transplantation: three patients are in complete remission of their hematological and gynecological malignancies at 13, 19, and 25 months; the remaining two patients died due to progression of their hematological disease. We show the potential risk of hematological disorders in EOC patients treated with chemotherapy and prolonged PARPi therapy. In our series, tr-HDs incidence was higher compared to recent reports in large series. Our observations suggest careful monitoring in order to conclusively define, on large series and prolonged follow-up, the actual risk of tr-HDs in patients under PARPi. Notably, prompt diagnosis of hematological abnormalities and appropriate management allow achievement of remission from severe hematological complications, at least in most patients.

Antiemetic prophylaxis in patients undergoing hematopoietic stem cell transplantation: a multicenter survey of the Gruppo Italiano Trapianto Midollo Osseo (GITMO) transplant programs.

A survey within hematopoietic stem cell transplant (HSCT) centers of the Gruppo Italiano Trapianto Midollo Osseo (GITMO) was performed in order to describe current antiemetic prophylaxis in patients undergoing HSCT. The multicenter survey was performed by a questionnaire, covering the main areas on chemotherapy-induced nausea and vomiting (CINV): antiemetic prophylaxis guidelines used, antiemetic prophylaxis in different conditioning regimens, and methods of CINV evaluation. The survey was carried out in November 2016, and it was repeated 6 months after the publication of the Multinational Association of Supportive Care in Cancer (MASCC)/European Society for Medical Oncology (ESMO) specific guidelines on antiemetic prophylaxis in HSCT. The results show a remarkable heterogeneity of prophylaxis among the various centers and a significant difference between the guidelines and the clinical practice. In the main conditioning regimens, the combination of a serotonin3 receptor antagonist (5-HT3-RA) with dexamethasone and neurokin1 receptor antagonist (NK1-RA), as recommended by MASCC/ESMO guidelines, increased from 0 to 15% (before the publication of the guidelines) to 9-30% (after the publication of the guidelines). This study shows a lack of compliance with specific antiemetic guidelines, resulting mainly in under-prophylaxis. Concerted strategies are required to improve the current CINV prophylaxis, to draft shared common guidelines, and to increase the knowledge and the adherence to the current recommendations for CINV prophylaxis in the specific field of HSCT.

Thymoma and pure red cell aplasia with hypoplasia of megakaryocytopoiesis: A rare and life-treating condition.

Thymic tumors are rare diseases with an incidence of 0.15 cases per 100,000 person-years. They can be associated with a variety of other syndromes, such as Myasthenia Gravis or autoimmune disorders. Among them, pure red cell aplasia is a hemato-pathological condition characterized by anemia, reticulocytopenia and erythroid cell hypoplasia of bone marrow. Here, we reported a case of a 62-year-old female with a long history of neurologic symptoms due to Myasthenia Gravis. She was diagnosed with thymoma, with mediastinal mass and pleural thickening. After chemoradiotherapy treatment, she was surgically resected successfully, but she developed anemia and severe thrombocytopenia, worsening in respiratory failure requiring intubation. A bone marrow biopsy was performed resulting in a red-cell aplasia with marked hypoplasia of megakaryocytopoiesis compatible with pure red cell aplasia with acquired thrombocytopenia. Considering that there are no standard treatments, clinical condition improvement was achieved only after some lines of medical treatment. Our data, together with the few already published, help to raise the attention towards acquired cytopenias and the need to optimize the treatment for a potentially life-threatening condition.

The influence of disease and comorbidity risk assessments on the survival of MDS and oligoblastic AML patients treated with 5-azacitidine: A retrospective analysis in ten centers of the "Rete Ematologica Lombarda".

5-Azacytidine is an effective therapy in high risk MDS and oligoblastic AML. This "real life" analysis was made on 185 patients treated with 5-azacytidine in 10 centers afferent to REL ("Rete Ematologica Lombarda"), a network in Lombardia region. The aim was to assess the influence of disease and comorbidity risk assessments on the survival. The results confirm the utility of 5-azacitidine in prolonging OS regardless of advanced age and the presence of comorbidities. They also encourage an early treatment since patients with IPSS-R High risk MDS have better outcome with respect to Very High risk ones. According to the IPSS cytogenetic risk, there was no difference in the outcome between Intermediate and High risk patients. Nevertheless, a poorer cytogenetic risk, according to the IPSS-R cytogenetic stratification, negatively influenced the outcome.

Final Results of a Prospective Evaluation of the Predictive Value of Interim Positron Emission Tomography in Patients With Diffuse Large B-Cell Lymphoma Treated With R-CHOP-14 (SAKK 38/07).

PURPOSE: Our main objective was to prospectively determine the prognostic value of [(18)F]fluorodeoxyglucose positron emission tomography/computed tomography (PET/CT) after two cycles of rituximab plus cyclophosphamide, doxorubicin, vincristine, and prednisone given every 14 days (R-CHOP-14) under standardized treatment and PET evaluation criteria. PATIENTS AND METHODS: Patients with any stage of diffuse large B-cell lymphoma were treated with six cycles of R-CHOP-14 followed by two cycles of rituximab. PET/CT examinations were performed at baseline, after two cycles (and after four cycles if the patient was PET-positive after two cycles), and at the end of treatment. PET/CT examinations were evaluated locally and by central review. The primary end point was event-free survival at 2 years (2-year EFS). RESULTS: Median age of the 138 evaluable patients was 58.5 years with a WHO performance status of 0, 1, or 2 in 56%, 36%, or 8% of the patients, respectively. By local assessment, 83 PET/CT scans (60%) were reported as positive and 55 (40%) as negative after two cycles of R-CHOP-14. Two-year EFS was significantly shorter for PET-positive compared with PET-negative patients (48% v 74%; P = .004). Overall survival at 2 years was not significantly different, with 88% for PET-positive versus 91% for PET-negative patients (P = .46). By using central review and the Deauville criteria, 2-year EFS was 41% versus 76% (P < .001) for patients who had interim PET/CT scans after two cycles of R-CHOP-14 and 24% versus 72% (P < .001) for patients who had PET/CT scans at the end of treatment. CONCLUSION: Our results confirmed that an interim PET/CT scan has limited prognostic value in patients with diffuse large B-cell lymphoma homogeneously treated with six cycles of R-CHOP-14 in a large prospective trial. At this point, interim PET/CT scanning is not ready for clinical use to guide treatment decisions in individual patients.

Efficacy of photopheresis extracorporeal procedure as single treatment for severe chronic GVHD: a case report.

Allogeneic hematopoietic stem cell transplantation is the only potentially curative therapeutic option for many malignant and nonmalignant hematologic disorders. Despite this, several factors unfavorably affect the outcome of this procedure and in particular chronic graft-versus-host disease (cGVHD) remains the principal cause of morbidity after allogeneic transplantation. Here we present our experience regarding a patient affected by extensive chronic GVHD (cGVHD) treated only with extracorporeal photopheresis procedure (ECP) as first line treatment. The patient, presenting an high risk myelodysplastic syndrome (MDS), underwent an allogeneic peripheral stem cells transplantation. About 2 months after transplantation she experienced a hematological and clinical relapse of MDS. After reinduction therapy with azacitidine she obtained a second complete remission. Because of the risk of relapse related to a strong immunosuppressant therapy and the previous infectious complication, we decided to start a treatment with ECP alone for cGVHD. After six procedure the patient obtained a complete resolution of all signs and symptoms of the cGVHD. This experience may support the possibility to use only an immunomodulant treatment like ECP for the cGVHD, reducing the risk of complications of prolonged immunosuppressant treatment.

Antibodies against human cytomegalovirus late protein UL94 in the pathogenesis of scleroderma-like skin lesions in chronic graft-versus-host disease.

Human cytomegalovirus (hCMV) infection and its reactivation correlate both with the increased risk and with the worsening of graft-versus-host disease (GVHD). Because scleroderma-like skin lesions can occur in chronic GVHD (cGVHD) in allogeneic stem-cell transplant (HCT) patients and hCMV is relevant in the pathogenesis of systemic sclerosis (SSc), we evaluated the possible pathogenetic link between hCMV and skin cGVHD. Plasma from 18 HCT patients was tested for anti-UL94 and/or anti-NAG-2 antibodies, identified in SSc patients, by direct ELISA assays. Both donors and recipients were anti-hCMV IgG positive, without autoimmune diseases. Patients' purified anti-UL94 and anti-NAG-2 IgG binding to human umbilical endothelial cells (HUVECs) and fibroblasts was performed by FACS analysis and ELISA test. HUVECs apoptosis and fibroblasts proliferation induced by patients' anti-NAG-2 antibodies were measured by DNA fragmentation and cell viability, respectively. About 11/18 patients developed cGVHD and all of them showed skin involvement, ranging from diffuse SSc-like lesions to limited erythema. Eight of eleven cGVHD patients were positive for anti-UL94 and/or anti-NAG-2 antibodies. Remarkably, 4/5 patients who developed diffuse or limited SSc-like lesions had antibodies directed against both UL94 and NAG-2; their anti-NAG-2 IgG-bound HUVECs and fibroblasts induce both endothelial cell apoptosis and fibroblasts proliferation, similar to that induced by purified anti-UL94 and anti-NAG-2 antibodies obtained from SSc patients. In conclusion, our data suggest a pathogenetic link between hCMV infection and scleroderma-like skin cGVHD in HCT patients through a mechanism of molecular mimicry between UL94 viral protein and NAG-2 molecule, as observed in patients with SSc.

Multicenter experience using total lymphoid irradiation and antithymocyte globulin as conditioning for allografting in hematological malignancies.

A non myeloablative conditioning with total lymphoid irradiation (TLI) and antithymocyte globulin (ATG) was shown to protect against graft-versus-host disease (GVHD). To evaluate the effects of TLI-ATG in a multicenter study, 45 heavily pretreated patients, median age 51, with lymphoid (n = 38) and myeloid (n = 7) malignancies were enrolled at 9 centers. Twenty-eight patients (62%) received at least 3 lines of treatment before allografting, and 13 (29%) had refractory/relapsed disease at the time of transplantation. Peripheral blood hematopoietic cells were from HLA identical sibling (n = 30), HLA-matched (n = 9), or 1 antigen HLA-mismatched (n = 6) unrelated donors. A cumulative TLI dose of 8 Gy was administered from day -11 through -1 with ATG at the dose of 1.5 mg/kg/day (from day -11 through -7). GVHD prophylaxis consisted of cyclosporine and mycophenolate mofetil. Donor engraftment was reached in 95% of patients. Grade II to IV acute GVHD (aGVHD) developed in 6 patients (13.3%), and in 2 of these patients, it developed beyond day 100. Incidence of chronic GVHD (cGVHD) was 35.8%. One-year nonrelapse mortality was 9.1%. After a median follow-up of 28 months (range, 3-57 months) from transplantation, median overall survival was not reached, whereas median event-free survival was 20 months. This multicenter experience confirms that TLI-ATG protects against GVHD and maintains graft-vs-tumor effects.

A single dose of Pegfilgrastim versus daily Filgrastim to evaluate the mobilization and the engraftment of autologous peripheral hematopoietic progenitors in malignant lymphoma patients candidate for high-dose chemotherapy.

Pegfilgrastim has equivalent efficacy to daily G-CSF in enhancing neutrophil recovery after chemotherapy, but conclusive data concerning its use for peripheral blood stem cell (PBSC) mobilization are lacking. From 2003 to 2008 we used high-dose chemotherapy in 64 lymphoma patients. At mobilization chemotherapy (ESHAP) the first 26 patients used unconjugated G-CSF, while the remaining 38 patients received Pegfilgrastim. At the time of harvest 25 patients collected stem cells after the use of G-CSF and 36 in the Peg group. No statistical by significant differences were observed in median peripheral CD34+ cells mobilized (77 µL versus 71 µL) and in collected PBSC (12.3 × 10(6)/kg versus 9.4 × 10(6)/kg p = 0.76). In the PEG group all patients collected the target PBSC with a single apheresis with a greater proportion of "optimal" mobilizers (83% versus 64%; p = 0.05). In conclusion a single dose of Pegfilgrastim could be a valid alternative to unconjugated G-CSF to mobilize PBSC in lymphoma patients.

Rituximab and subcutaneous cladribine in chronic lymphocytic leukemia for newly diagnosed and relapsed patients.

The aim of this study was to investigate the efficacy of combined treatment with rituximab and subcutaneous cladribine in patients with newly diagnosed and relapsed chronic lymphocytic leukemia (CLL). Forty-three patients with active CLL or small lymphocytic lymphoma received rituximab 375 mg/m(2) on day 1 and cladribine 0.1 mg/kg subcutaneously on days 2-6. The treatment was repeated every 4 weeks for a total of four cycles. Sixteen patients were pretreated. The overall response rate was 88% (50% complete remission and 38% partial remission). The median time to treatment failure was 37.9 months. Grade 4 neutropenia developed in 5% of patients. The data indicate that combination therapy with rituximab and cladribine is a valuable and safe treatment for patients with CLL.