First annual report of the Austrian CML registry.

The Austrian chronic myeloid leukemia (CML) registry monitors individual disease courses, treatments applied, clinical outcome, and side effects of CML patients on a nationwide basis to provide data on the "real-life" situation and to complement the information and interpretation gained from the selected patient population observed in clinical trials. This report summarizes the Austrian CML registry data as of March 2009. A total of 179 patients have been registered with a median number of 1012 follow-up visits and median observation duration of 20 months. At diagnosis most patients (n = 163) were in chronic phase (early, late, and secondary), whereas only 4 were in advanced phase. A total of 137 patients were treated with tyrosine kinase inhibitors (TKIs), of which 14 received first and second generation TKIs sequentially. Other treatment modalities included chemotherapy or interferon and stem cell transplantation (SCT). Cumulative incidence rates for complete hematological responses (CHR) were 91.6% and 94.4% at 12 and 24 months, respectively, compared to cumulative incidence rates of complete cytogenetical response rates of 64% and 80% at these timepoints. A total of 5 patients progressed from chronic phase to accelerated (n = 3) and blastic phase (n = 2) while receiving imatinib standard dose. Estimated overall survival (OS) rate at 60 months was 90% and progression free survival (PFS) according to European Leukemia Net (ELN) failure definition was 58%.

The Austrian fulvestrant registry: results from a prospective observation of fulvestrant in postmenopausal patients with metastatic breast cancer.

BACKGROUND: Endocrine therapy is the preferred treatment in oestrogen- and/or progesterone-receptor (ER/PgR) positive breast cancer. Fulvestrant is a pure ER-antagonist. We present results from the Austrian Fulvestrant Registry. METHODS: Three-hundred and fifty patients were included. Time to progression (TTP) was defined as primary endpoint. A multivariate analysis was performed to identify factors significantly associated with TTP. RESULTS: Fulvestrant was administered as first-line therapy in 26%, second-line in 49%, and third-line or beyond in 25%. TTP was median 7 months. We observed a response in 15% of patients and 41% had SD > or = 6 months. First-line treatment and non-visceral metastases were associated with longer TTP. One case of pulmonary embolism was reported. Grade 3 toxicities consisted of joint pain (1.4%), nausea (1.4%) and hot flashes (0.3%). CONCLUSIONS: Fulvestrant was effective and well tolerated. TTP was superior to other trials, due to the large proportion of first-line patients. Activity is apparently independent of Her2-status.

Long-term results of autologous stem cell transplantation for Hodgkin's disease (HD) and low-/intermediate-grade B non-Hodgkin's lymphoma (NHL): a report from the Austrian Stem Cell Transplantation Registry (ASCTR).

Between 1990 and 2001, 68 patients with advanced Hodgkin's disease (HD) and 86 patients classified as low-/intermediate-grade B non-Hodgkin's lymphoma (NHL) were reported to the Austrian Stem Cell Transplantation Registry (ASCTR). Following autologous stem cell transplantation (SCT) for HD, overall survival was 56% [95% confidence interval (CI): 40-72%] with a disease-/progression-free survival of 49%, reaching a plateau at 5 years. Using multivariate Cox regression analysis BEAM conditioning (carmustine, cytarabine, etoposide and melphalan) was predictive for favourable outcome, better disease-/progression-free survival and a significantly lower risk for relapse. The cumulative incidence of relapse was 30%, even for patients in complete remission at time of SCT. The cumulative risk for developing a secondary malignancy increased continuously over time, achieving 20% at 7 years and 46% at 10 years with previous radiotherapy as the only risk factor in the multivariate analysis. Overall survival for NHL patients was 45% (95% CI: 26-64%) with a disease-/progression-free survival of 26% at 7 years. In the multivariate Cox regression analysis stage of disease at time of SCT was the most powerful parameter for overall survival, disease-/progression-free survival and relapse. Mantle cell lymphoma, greater than or equal to three lines of previous therapy, and a conditioning regimen other than BEAM were also predictive for death. The main reason for treatment failure was relapse (cumulative incidence 54-75%). Because of the high risk of relapse/progression in both disease categories and the additional high rate of second malignancies in HD patients, allogeneic stem cells should be considered a valuable alternative for selected patients. The efficacy of allotransplantation following reduced-intensity conditioning should be tested in randomised trials.