Clinical outcomes of unrelated cord blood transplantation in children with malignant and non-malignant diseases: Multicenter experience in China

Comparison of oral chronic graft-versus-host disease characteristics between patients with malignant and non-malignant hematopoietic disorders

OBJECTIVES

To characterize and compare the clinical manifestations of oral chronic graft-versus-host disease (cGVHD) in patients with malignant hematopoietic disorders versus those with non-malignant hematopoietic disorders, and to analyze associated risk factors.

MATERIALS AND METHODS

Detailed examinations of the oral cavity were conducted in patients with malignant hematopoietic disorders (n = 52) and non-malignant hematopoietic disorders (n = 56) who developed oral cGVHD following allogeneic hematopoietic stem cell transplantation (allo-HSCT). The severity of oral cGVHD was scored, and logistic regression analysis was employed to identify risk factors for oral cGVHD (n = 261).

RESULTS

The incidence of oral cGVHD in patients with malignant hematopoietic disorders was significantly higher compared to those with non-malignant hematopoietic disorders (51.49% vs 35.00%, P = 0.01). Additionally, a significantly greater proportion of patients with malignant hematopoietic disorders had an oral lesion score exceeding 5 compared to patients with non-malignant hematopoietic disorders (17/52 vs 7/56, P < 0.0001). The median time from transplantation to the onset of oral cGVHD was earlier in patients with malignant hematopoietic disorders than in patients with non-malignant hematopoietic disorders (6 months vs 7 months, P = 0.001). Furthermore, female donors to male recipients [OR = 1.926, 95% CI (1.07, 3.442), P = 0.027] emerged as an independent risk factor for oral cGVHD.

CONCLUSION

Compared to patients with non-malignant hematopoietic disorders, those with malignant hematopoietic disorders exhibit a higher incidence of complications following allo-HSCT. Additionally, patients with malignant hematopoietic disorders experience a more rapid disease onset and are at a greater risk of developing severe oral cGVHD. Furthermore, female donors to male recipients represents a significant risk factor for oral cGVHD but not associated with diagnoses with benign and malignant blood disorders.

CLINICAL RELEVANCE

This study elucidates the distinct characteristics of oral cGVHD in patients with malignant hematopoietic disorders and non-malignant hematopoietic disorders, providing valuable insights for developing more precise and personalized clinical treatment strategies for these patients.

Outcome of first or second transplantation using unrelated umbilical cord blood without ATG conditioning regimen for pediatric bone marrow failure disorders

BACKGROUND

Unrelated umbilical cord blood transplantation (UCBT) for bone marrow failure (BMF) disorders using conditioning regimens without Anti-Thymocyte Globulin (ATG) has been used as an alternative transplantation for emerging patients without matched-sibling donors. Experience with this transplant modality in children is limited, especially as a secondary treatment for transplant failure patients.

PROCEDURE

We retrospectively reviewed 17 consecutive bone marrow failure patients who underwent unrelated umbilical cord blood transplantation in our center and received conditioning regimens of Total Body Irradiation (TBI) or Busulfan (BU) + Fludarabine (FLU) + Cyclophosphamide (CY).

RESULTS

Among the 17 BMF patients, 15 patients were treated with first cord blood transplantation and another 2 with secondary cord blood transplantation because of graft failure after first haploidentical stem cell transplantation at days +38 and +82. All patients engrafted with a median donor cell chimerism of 50 % at days +7 (range, 16 %-99.95 %) and finally rose to 100 % at days +30. Median time to neutrophil engraftment was 19 days (range, 12-30) and time to platelet engraftment was 32 days (range, 18-61). Pre-engraftment syndrome (PES) was found in 16 patients (94.11 %, 16/17). Cumulative incidence of grades II to IV acute GVHD was 58.8 % (95 % CI: 32.7-84.9 %), and 17.6 % (95 % CI: 2.6-37.9 %) of patients developed chronic GVHD. The 3-year overall survival (OS) and failure-free survival (FFS) rates were 92.86 ± 6.88 %.

CONCLUSION

UCBT is an effective alternative treatment for bone marrow failure pediatric patients. TBI/BU + FLU + CY regimen ensure a high engraftment rate for unrelated umbilical cord blood transplantation, which overcomes the difficulty of graft failure. Secondary salvage use of cord blood transplantation may still be useful for patients who have failed after other transplantation.

The Clinical Characteristics and Prognosis of AYA and Older Adult ETP-ALL/LBL: A Real-World Multicenter Study in China

Early T-cell precursor (ETP) lymphoblastic leukemia/lymphoma is a high-risk T lymphoblastic leukemia/lymphoma (T-ALL/LBL) subgroup. We performed a real-world multicenter study to explore the clinical characteristics and prognosis of adolescent and young adults (AYA) and older adult ETP leukemia/lymphoma. A total of 103 patients with ETP-ALL/LBL in five centers in China between January 2016 and February 2021 were included in this study. The median age was 29 years (range, 15–70 years). Next-generation sequencing was performed in 94 patients and revealed that NOTCH1 (35.1%, 33 cases) was the most frequently mutated gene, followed by JAK3 (16.0%, 15 cases), PHF6 (13.80%, 13 cases) and EZH2 (11.70%, 11 cases). Complete remission (CR) was obtained in 74.2% (72/97) of patients, and 6 relapsed/refractory patients received a decitabine combined with AAG priming regimen as reinduction therapy with a CR rate of 50%. With a median follow-up of 18 months (0.5–60 months), the 2-year overall survival (OS) and relapse-free survival (RFS) rates for the entire cohort were 54% and 57.7%, respectively. Allogeneic stem cell transplantation (allo-SCT) was performed in 59.8% (58/97) of patients. After landmark analysis at 6 months, the 2-year OS rates was 77% of patients with allo-SCT at CR1 and 25% of patients with chemotherapy alone (p < 0.001). A multivariate analysis suggested that allo-SCT and CR after the first course induction were independent prognostic factors for OS. Collectively, we reported the largest cohort study with AYA and older adult ETP-ALL/LBL, and we found that ETP-ALL/LBL was highly invasive and had a poor long-term prognosis. Allo-SCT could significantly improve ETP-ALL/LBL patient survival.

The clinical outcomes and genomic landscapes of acute lymphoblastic leukemia patients with E2A-PBX1: A 10-year retrospective study

The clinical outcomes and genomic features of E2A-PBX1 (TCF3-PBX1)-positive B-cell acute lymphoblastic leukemia (B-ALL) patients remain unclear. A total of 137 patients carrying E2A-PBX1 among 3164 B-ALL patients between 2009 and 2019 were retrospectively analyzed. The 5-year overall survival (OS) and disease-free survival (DFS) rates of the whole cohort were 68.6% and 61.0%, respectively. Age [DFS, p = 0.037; cumulative incidence of relapse (CIR), p = 0.005] and the level of minimal residual disease (MRD) after induction chemotherapy (OS, p = 0.020; DFS, p = 0.002; CIR, p = 0.006) were independent risk factors. In adolescents/adults, allogeneic hematopoietic stem cell transplantation (allo-HSCT) at first complete remission (CR1) significantly improved the 5-year prognosis (OS, p < 0.001; DFS, p < 0.001; CIR, p < 0.001). Haploidentical HSCT decreased the CIR compared with human leukocyte antigen-matched HSCT in adolescents/adults (p = 0.017). Mutations in PBX1, PAX5, CTCF and SETD2, amplification of AKT3, and deletion of CDKN2A/B were common in the total cohort, while transcriptome differences were found in the cell cycle, nerve growth factor (NGF) signaling pathway and transcriptional regulation by TP53 between adolescents/adults and children. Patients with multiple subclones at diagnosis tended to have unfavorable 3-year prognoses (DFS, p = 0.010; CIR, p = 0.021). Leukemia clones with DNA repair gene mutations showed aggressive and treatment-refractory phenotypes in this subtype of ALL. Our study indicated that age, the level of MRD and DNA repair gene mutations were associated with E2A-PBX1-positive B-ALL outcomes. Allo-HSCT, especially haploidentical HSCT, could improve the prognosis of adolescent/adult patients.

[Comparison of umbilical cord blood transplantation and hematopoietic stem cell transplantation from HLA-matched sibling donors in the treatment of myelodysplastic syndrome-EB or acute myeloid leukemia with myelodysplasia-related changes]

Objective: To compare the clinical efficacy of umbilical cord blood transplantation (UCBT) and hematopoietic stem cell transplantation from HLA-matched sibling donors (MSD-HSCT) in the treatment of myelodysplastic syndrome-EB (MDS-EB) or acute myeloid leukemia with myelodysplasia-related changes (AML-MRC) . Methods: A cohort of 64 patients (including 38 cases of MDS-EB and 26 cases of AML-MRC) who received UCBT/MSD-HSCT from February 2011 to December 2017 were retrospectively analyzed. Results: ①Compared with MSD-HSCT group, UCBT group had a higher proportion of AML-MRC patients [52.8% (19/36) vs 25.0% (7/28) , P=0.025], and a lower median age [13 (1.5-52) years vs 32 (10-57) years, P=0.001]. ②The engraftment of neutrophils both in UCBT and MSD-HSCT groups on +42 d was 100%, and the median engraftment time was 17.5 (11-31) d and 11.5 (10-20) d, respectively. The engraftment of platelet at +100 d in UCBT group was 91.4%, the median engraftment time was 40 (15-96) d; The engraftment of platelet at +100 d in MSD-HSCT group was 100%, and the median engraftment time was 15 (11-43) d. ③There were no statistically significant differences in terms of the cumulative incidence of Ⅱ-Ⅳ and Ⅲ/Ⅳ aGVHD of 100 d and transplant related mortality (TRM) of 180 d, relapse rate, overall survival (OS) , disease-free survival (DFS) between UCBT and MSD-HSCT groups (P>0.05) . ④The 3-year cumulative incidence of chronic GVHD (cGVHD) and severe chronic GVHD in UCBT group were lower than of MSD-HSCT group [28.3% (95%CI 13.4%-45.3%) vs 67.9% (95%CI 46.1%-82.4%) , P=0.002; 10.3% (95%CI 2.5%-24.8%) vs 50.0% (95%CI 30.0%-67.1%) , respectively, P<0.001]. The cumulative 3-year incidence of GVHD-free and relapse-free survival (GRFS) of UCBT group was significantly higher than of MSD-HSCT group [55.0% (95%CI 36.0%-70.6%) vs 28.6% (95%CI 13.5%-45.6%) , P=0.038]. Conclusion: UCBT could obtain better quality of life after transplantation than MSD-HSCT in treatment of MDS-EB/AML-MRC.

[Advances in the treatment of juvenile myelomonocytic leukemia]

Juvenile myelomonocytic leukemia (JMML) is a rare chronic myeloid leukemia in children and has the features of both myelodysplastic syndrome and myeloproliferative neoplasm. It is highly malignant and has a poor treatment outcome. Children with JMML have a poor response to conventional chemotherapy. At present, hematopoietic stem cell transplantation is the only possible cure for this disease. In recent years, significant progress has been made in targeted therapy for mutant genes in the Ras signaling pathway and demethylation treatment of aberrant methylation of polygenic CpG islands. This article reviews the treatment and efficacy evaluation of JMML.