COVID19 and acute lymphoblastic leukemias of children and adolescents: Updated recommendations (Version 2) of the Leukemia Committee of the French Society for the fight against Cancers and leukemias in children and adolescents (SFCE)

COVID-19 in Pediatric Patients With Acute Lymphoblastic Leukemia or Lymphoma

Importance

COVID-19 in pediatric patients with acute lymphoblastic leukemia or lymphoma (ALL/LLy) has not been described in detail and may affect chemotherapy administration and long-term outcomes.

Objective

To describe the clinical presentation of COVID-19 and chemotherapy modifications in pediatric patients with ALL/LLy.

Design, Setting, and Participants

This is a retrospective case series of patients at St Jude Children's Research Hospital and its affiliate sites with newly diagnosed ALL/LLy who were treated on the Total XVII protocol (NCT03117751) between March 30, 2020, and June 20, 2022. Participants included patients aged 1 to 18 years who were receiving protocol chemotherapy. Acute symptoms and chemotherapy modifications were evaluated for 60 days after the COVID-19 diagnosis, and viral clearance, adverse events, and second SARS-CoV-2 infections were followed up during the 27-month study period.

Exposures

SARS-CoV-2; all patients were screened at least weekly and at symptom onset and/or after known exposure to SARS-CoV-2.

Main Outcomes and Measures

Description of the spectrum of COVID-19 illness and chemotherapy modifications.

Results

Of 308 pediatric patients, 110 (36%) developed COVID-19 at a median age of 8.2 (IQR, 5.3-14.5) years. Sixty-eight patients (62%) were male. Most patients were in the continuation/maintenance phase of chemotherapy (101 [92%]). Severe disease was rare (7 [6%]) but was associated with older age, higher white blood cell counts at ALL/LLy diagnosis, lower absolute lymphocyte counts at COVID-19 diagnosis, abnormal chest imaging findings, and SARS-CoV-2 reinfection. Rare but serious thrombotic events included pulmonary embolism and cerebral venous sinus thrombosis (n = 1 for each). No multisystem inflammatory syndrome in children or death was seen. SARS-CoV-2 reinfection occurred in 11 patients (10%) and was associated with older age and with receiving standard or high-risk vs low-risk ALL/LLy therapy. Chemotherapy interruptions occurred in 96 patients (87%) and were longer for patients with severe disease, SARS-CoV-2 reinfection, and/or a COVID-19 diagnosis during the pre-Omicron variant period vs the post-Omicron period (after December 27, 2021).

Conclusions and Relevance

In this case series of COVID-19 in pediatric patients with ALL/LLy, severe COVID-19 was rare, but chemotherapy administration was affected in most patients. Long-term studies are needed to establish the outcomes of COVID-19 in this population.

Risk Factors for Pediatric Critical COVID-19: A Systematic Review and Meta-Analysis

Background

Risk stratification is a cornerstone of the Pediatric Infectious Diseases Society COVID-19 treatment guidance. This systematic review and meta-analysis aimed to define the clinical characteristics and comorbidities associated with critical COVID-19 in children and adolescents.

Methods

Two independent reviewers screened the literature (Medline and EMBASE) for studies published through August 2023 that reported outcome data on patients aged ≤21 years with COVID-19. Critical disease was defined as an invasive mechanical ventilation requirement, intensive care unit admission, or death. Random effects models were used to estimate pooled odds ratios (OR) with 95% confidence intervals (CI), and heterogeneity was explored through subgroup analyses.

Results

Among 10,178 articles, 136 studies met the inclusion criteria for review. Data from 70 studies, which collectively examined 172,165 children and adolescents with COVID-19, were pooled for meta-analysis. In previously healthy children, the absolute risk of critical disease from COVID-19 was 4% (95% CI, 1%-10%). Compared with no comorbidities, the pooled OR for critical disease was 3.95 (95% CI, 2.78-5.63) for presence of one comorbidity and 9.51 (95% CI, 5.62-16.06) for ≥2 comorbidities. Key risk factors included cardiovascular and neurological disorders, chronic pulmonary conditions (excluding asthma), diabetes, obesity, and immunocompromise, all with statistically significant ORs >2.00.

Conclusions

While the absolute risk for critical COVID-19 in children and adolescents without underlying health conditions is relatively low, the presence of one or more comorbidities was associated with markedly increased risk. These findings support the importance of risk stratification in tailoring pediatric COVID-19 management.

A Review of Acute Lymphocytic Leukemia (ALL) in the Pediatric Population: Evaluating Current Trends and Changes in Guidelines in the Past Decade

Acute lymphocytic leukemia (ALL) is a commonly diagnosed cancer in children. Despite technological advancements to improve treatment and survival rates, there has been a steady increase in the incidence of ALL and treatment failures. This paper discusses the pathogenic interaction between genetic and environmental factors leading to childhood ALL. It evaluates the current treatment guidelines and notable obstacles leading to resistance, relapse, and treatment toxicities. The review evaluates a 10-year trend in the management guidelines of pediatric ALL through a systematic literature review of records from 2012 to 2023. Findings show that improvement in the five-year survival rates, notwithstanding rates of relapse and incurable diseases, is still high. Furthermore, several risk factors, including an interplay between genetic and environmental factors, are largely contributory to the outcome of ALL treatments and its overall incidence. Moreover, huge financial costs have remained a significant challenge in outcomes. There remains a need to provide individualized treatment plans, shared decision-making, and goals of care as parts of the management guidelines for the best possible outcomes. We expect that future advancements will increase overall survival rates and disease-free years.

SARS-CoV-2 infections in patients enrolled on the Children's Oncology Group standard-risk B-cell acute lymphoblastic leukemia trial, AALL1731

Hematologic malignancy is a risk factor for severe coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) in adults; however, data specific to children with leukemia are limited. High-quality infectious adverse event data from the ongoing Children's Oncology Group (COG) standard-risk B acute lymphoblastic leukemia/lymphoma (ALL/LLy) trial, AALL1731, were analyzed to provide a disease-specific estimate of SARS-CoV-2 infection outcomes in pediatric ALL. Of 253 patients with reported infections, the majority (77.1%) were asymptomatic or mildly symptomatic (CTCAE grade 1/2) and there was a single COVID-19-related death. These data suggest SARS-CoV-2 infection does not confer substantial morbidity among young patients with B-lymphoblastic leukemia/lymphoma (B-ALL/LLy).

Parent Acceptance toward Inactivated COVID-19 Vaccination in Children with Acute Lymphoblastic Leukemia: The Power of Oncologist and Alliance

Objectives: The current study aims to survey the willingness of parents to vaccinate their children, who are childhood acute lymphoblastic leukemia survivors (CALLS), and identify factors associated with vaccine acceptance. Methods: Parents of CALLS on/off treatment, with the general condition of being amendable to vaccination, were recruited for interviews with attending oncologists about COVID-19 vaccination acceptance from July to November 2021 in China. After controlling for socioeconomic factors, the Association of Oncologists’ recommendations and parent−oncologist alliance with acceptance status were investigated. For validation, propensity score-matched (PSM) analysis was used. Results: A total of 424 families were included in the study, with CALLS mean remission age of 5.99 ± 3.40 years. Among them, 91 (21.4%) agreed, 168 (39.6%) hesitated, and 165 (38.9%) parents disagreed with the vaccination. The most common reason that kept parents from vaccinating their children was lack of recommendations from professional personnel (84/165, 50.9%), and massive amounts of internet information (78/175, 44.6%) was the main nonhealthcare resource against vaccination. Logistic regression analysis showed that only the recommendation from the oncologist was associated with parents’ vaccine acceptance (OR = 3.17, 95% CI = 1.93−5.20), as demonstrated by PSM comparison (42 in recommendation group vs. 18 in nonrecommendation group among 114 pairs, p < 0.001). An exploratory analysis revealed that parents with a better patient−oncologist alliance had a significantly higher level of acceptance (65.6% in alliance group vs. 15.6% in nonalliance group among 32 pairs, p < 0.001). Conclusions: Due to a lack of professional recommendation resources and the potential for serious consequences, parents were generally reluctant to vaccinate their CALLS. The recommendation of oncologists, which was influenced by the parent−oncologist alliance, significantly increased acceptance. This study emphasizes the critical role of oncologists in vaccinating cancer survivors and can be used to promote COVID-19 vaccines among vulnerable populations.

A systematic review of current status and challenges of vaccinating children against SARS-CoV-2

The coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19), caused by severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2), has inflicted immense damage to countries, economies and societies worldwide. Authorized COVID-19 vaccines based on different platforms have been widely inoculated in adults, showing up to 100% immunogenicity with significant efficacy in preventing SARS-CoV-2 infections and the occurrence of severe COVID-19. It has also greatly slowed the evolution of SARS-CoV-2 variants, as shown in clinical trials and real-world evidence. However, the total dosage of COVID-19 vaccines for children is much smaller than that for adults due to limitations from parental concern of vaccine safety, presenting a potential obstacle in ending the COVID-19 pandemic. SARS-CoV-2 not only increases the risk of severe multisystem inflammatory syndrome (MIS-C) in children, but also negatively affects children's psychology and academics, indirectly hindering the maintenance and progress of normal social order. Therefore, this article examines the clinical manifestations of children infected with SARS-CoV-2, the status of vaccination against COVID-19 in children, vaccination-related adverse events, and the unique immune mechanisms of children. In particular, the necessity and challenges of vaccinating children against SARS-CoV-2 were highlighted from the perspectives of society and family. In summary, parental hesitancy is unnecessary as adverse events after COVID-19 vaccination have been proven to be infrequent, comprise of mild symptoms, and have a good prognosis.

Organisation of cancer care in troubling times: A scoping review of expert guidelines and their implementation during the COVID-19 pandemic

This scoping review mapped the main themes in existing expert guidelines for cancer care issued during the COVID-19 crisis from the period of March 2020-August 2021. The guidelines published during the research period principally relate to the first two waves in Europe and until the beginning of the vaccination campaign. They elaborated recommendations for cancer care reorganisation, in particular triage and quality of care issues. The article highlights the ethical, epistemological, as well as practical reasons that guidelines were not always followed to provide some lessons learned for future crises to enable better guideline development processes. We also elaborate early evidence on the impact of triage decisions and different perspectives on cancer care reorganisation from ethics and social science literature.