Bone marrow fibrosis at diagnosis predicts survival for primary acute myeloid leukemia

Impact of bone marrow fibrosis on outcomes of allogeneic hematopoietic stem cell transplantation in acute myeloid leukemia

Bone marrow fibrosis (BMF) of unknown etiology was common in hematological malignancies, but its prognostic value for acute myeloid leukemia (AML) is unclear. We interrogated data from 532 newly diagnosed subjects with AML receiving allogeneic hematological stem cell transplantation to evaluate the prognostic impact of BMF on transplant outcomes. Using the European consensus on the grading of BMF at diagnosis, 255 (48%) subjects were BMF-0, 209 (39%), BMF-1 and 68 (13%), BMF-2-3. Subjects with BMF-2-3 had poor overall survival (P < 0.001), disease-free survival (P < 0.001) and a higher incidence of relapse (CIR, P < 0.001). Multi-variable analyses in subjects achieving pre-transplant complete remission showed BMF-2-3 was an independent risk factor for CIR (Hazard Ratio [HR] = 2.17, (95% CI, 1.11, 4,24); P = 0.02). Furthermore, BMF-2-3 group showed delayed neutrophil and platelet engraftment and delayed B cell recovery post-transplantation. These findings demonstrate the significance of BMF in transplant outcomes and attract more attention to AML with BMF.

Outcomes of patients with acute myeloid leukemia and bone marrow fibrosis

The outcomes of patients with acute myeloid leukemia (AML) and bone marrow fibrosis (MF) are not well defined. The study objectives were to evaluate the degrees of MF in AML, and corresponding response rates and outcomes. We performed a retrospective review of 2302 patients with AML. We annotated the clinical and molecular characteristics, response to therapy, and survival outcomes of patients with bone marrow fibrosis. Overall, 492 patients (21.4%) had a reported microscopic evaluation of MF: 344 (69.9%) had MF grade 0-1 and 148 (30.1%) had MF grade 2-3. Patients with MF 2-3 had a higher proportion of complex cytogenetics (39.2% vs. 24.7%, p = 0.002) JAK2 mutations (25.7% vs. 18%, p = 0.07) and lower proportion of IDH2 (16.9% vs. 25.9%, p = 0.03) and CEBPA (15.5% vs. 27.6%, p = 0.006) mutations. 64% were treated with low-intensity chemotherapy (LIT) and 36.1% with intensive chemotherapy (IT). The complete remission (CR)/CR with incomplete count recovery (CRi) rates were 63.5% with IC versus 37.9% with LIT (p = 0.007). In patients aged 60 or older 4-week mortality was 12.5% with IC vs. 9.3% with LIT (p = 0.8). The median overall survival (OS) was 14.2 with MF 0-1 versus 7.5 months with MF 2-3 (p < 0.005). In patients aged 60 or older with MF 2-3 median OS was 6.5 months with IT versus 7.0 months with LIT (p = 0.19). In a multivariate analysis, grade 2-3 MF (HR 2.0, 95%CI 1.59-2.51) was the strongest prognostic factor for survival. In summary, grade 2-3 MF in AML is associated with worse outcomes.

Significance of bone marrow fibrosis in acute myeloid leukemia for survival in the real-world

Acute myeloid leukemia (AML) is a highly heterogeneous hematologic malignancy characterized by the proliferation of myeloid blasts. Bone marrow fibrosis (BMF), characterized by increased deposition of reticulin or collagen fibers, can occur in AML. International authoritative guidelines do not mention AML patients with BMF and the reported studies are inconsistent. Therefore, we retrospectively analyzed the clinical data of newly diagnosed AML patients in our hospital and compared the clinical characteristics, gene mutations and prognosis of AML patients with or without BMF. We found AML patients with BMF tended to be older, were more prone to hepatosplenomegaly, their level of β2-MG was higher and they often had karyotypes associated with a poor prognosis. The proportion of AML patients without BMF was high in the intermediate-risk group and low in the high-risk group. The mutation rates of ASXL1 and TET2 genes were higher and that of CEBPA was lower in the BMF group. Multivariate analysis showed BMF had independent prognostic significance. AML patients without BMF had higher CR/CRi rate, and the time of hematopoietic recovery in patients achieving CR/CRi was longer in BMF group. The degree of BMF, prognostic level and blasts in peripheral blood were independent risk factors for CR/CRi in newly diagnosed AML. AML patients in the BMF group, especially those with BMF ≥ 2, had a lower OS rate. In age<60 years old group, the higher the degree of BMF was, the shorter the median survival time and the lower the OS rate. In age ≥ 60 years old group, the median survival time in the BMF-1 and the BMF-2/3 groups was shorter. For AML with low, intermediate and high risk, there was always a lower OS rate in patients with BMF. The median survival of AML patients decreased with an increasing degree of BMF in different risk stratifications. BMF had no effect on OS of AML patients with HSCT. In conclusion, AML patients with BMF have a poor prognosis, and BMF was an independent prognostic factor for OS. The assessment of BMF was of great significance for the treatment efficacy and prognosis of newly diagnosed AML.

Metformin induces myeloma cells necrosis and apoptosis and it is considered for therapeutic use

Accumulating evidence, especially in solid tumor, indicated that metformin possessed the potential ability in the proliferation of cancer cells. However, its effects on myeloma cells were relatively rarely clarified. To evaluate the anti-cancer effects of metformin against dexamethasone-resistant and -sensitive myeloma cells. The effects of metformin on myeloma cell lines, including dexamethasone-resistant U266, H929, RPMI 8226 and dexamethasone-sensitive MM.1s, were investigated using the cell counting kit-8 assay for cell proliferation. Apoptosis, necrosis, cell cycle arrest, and cell death mechanisms were explored via flow cytometry (FCM) and Western blot. In addition, the anti-myeloma activity was evaluated in vivo via non-obese diabetic/severe combined immunodeficiency xenograft mouse models. Metformin inhibited proliferation in a dose and time-dependent manner in all the cell lines, while dexamethasone only affected the viability of MM1.s cells. The FCM detection displayed that metformin induced apoptosis in H929, RPMI8226 and MM.1s cells, while for U266 cells, it induced necrosis with Annexin V^-/Propidium iodide⁺. The cell cycle assays showed that metformin arrested G0/G1 phase of H929 and MM.1s cells, or G2/M phase of RPMI8226 cells, but showed no effect on U226 cells. Western blotting analyses demonstrated that the apoptosis-related protein of cleaved caspase 3 was activated; the expressions of Mcl-1, IGF-1R, PI3K, pAKT, and pmTOR proteins were inhibited by metformin in H929, RPMI8226, and MM.1s cells. The necrosis-related protein of iNOS increased in U266 cells while metformin treated. In vivo assay indicated metformin decreased U266 and H929 growth in bone marrow, and thus prolonged mice survival. These data suggested that metformin inhibited the proliferation of myeloma cells via inducing necrosis and apoptosis. This finding indicated that metformin may be served as a potent adjuvant in treating multiple myeloma.

[Analysis of clinical features, gene mutation, and prognostic characteristics in de novo acute myeloid leukemia patients with myelofibrosis]

Objective: This study aims to investigate the characteristics of gene mutation and clinical prognosis in de novo acute myeloid leukemia (AML) patients with myelofibrosis (MF) . Methods: From January 1, 2016, to February 1, 2020, 103 newly diagnosed AML patients in Henan Provincial People's Hospital who simultaneously underwent bone marrow biopsy examination were included. They were divided into the AML-MF group (MF grades 1-3) and the AML without MF group (MF grade 0) , and the clinical features, gene alterations, chemotherapy efficacy, and prognosis were compared between the two groups retrospectively. Results: ①MF was confirmed in 44.7% of AML patients (46/103) , of which 84.8% (39/46) were MF-1 and 15.2% (7/46) were MF-2/3, while MF was not confirmed in 55.3% (57/103) of AML patients. The median of WBC in the AML-MF group was significantly higher than in the AML without MF group [11.205 (0.69-191.82) ×10(9)/L vs 4.64 (0.18-95.10) ×10(9)/L, P=0.024]. More patients in the AML-MF group had nucleated erythrocytes in the peripheral blood (43.5% vs 24.6% , χ(2)=4.119, P=0.042) . All four AML-M(0) patients were in the AML-MF group, while AML without MF group had a higher proportion of AML-M(2) (P=0.014) . ②FLT3-ITD and NPM1 mutations were more frequent in the AML-MF group (P=0.021 and 0.039) , while CEBPA mutation was more frequent in the AML without MF group (P=0.029) . ③The CR rate in the AML-MF group was significantly lower than in the AML without MF group (69.7% vs 93.2% ) (χ(2) =7.412, P=0.006) . Multivariate analysis showed that MF, especially the grade of fibrosis, was an independent risk factor for CR in de novo AML. ④The 3-year OS of patients in the AML-MF group was significantly lower than in the AML without MF group (20.5% vs 72.2% , χ(2)=4.032, P=0.045) . Subgroup analysis showed that OS and PFS of AML-MF1 and AML-MF 2/3 groups were also significantly worse than those of the AML without MF group (P=0.001) and MF, especially MF ≥2, was an independent marker for inferior OS and PFS in de novo AML (P=0.021 and 0.044) . Conclusion: AML-MF has unique laboratory and clinical characteristics. MF is an independent risk factor for CR, OS, and PFS in AML. Evaluation of MF is very significant for therapy efficacy and prognosis judgment in de novo AML.