Clinical outcomes of patients with desmoplastic small round cell tumor of the peritoneum undergoing autologous HCT: a CIBMTR retrospective analysis

Desmoplastic small round cell tumor of the peritoneum (DSRCTP) is a rare, frequently fatal tumor. This retrospective study, based on CIBMTR registry data, describes the largest reported cohort of DSRCTP patients who have undergone Auto-SCT. The probabilities of disease-free survival (DFS) at 1 year for patients in CR and not in CR were 75% (95% confidence interval: 48-94%) and 35% (15-59%), respectively. The probability of OS at 3 years was 57% (29-83%) and 28% (9-51%) for patients in CR and not in CR, respectively. Median survival for the entire cohort was 31 months (36 months and 21 months for those in CR and not in CR, respectively). Engraftment at 42 days was 97% (88-100%). Treatment-related mortality was low, with only one death in the first 100 days. Auto-SCT is a tolerable approach in patients with DSRCTP, with the greatest benefit seen in those patients who obtain CR. For those not in CR, the median OS in this series is greater than previously reported (21 months vs 17 months), suggesting Auto-SCT is useful in prolonging DFS and OS, even in patients with residual or persistent disease pre-transplant.

Intracranial ependymomas of childhood: current management strategies

Children with intracranial ependymomas have relatively poor outcomes despite the low-grade histology of these tumors and recent advances in diagnosis, microneurosurgical resection, and adjuvant therapy. Aggressive surgical resection and postoperative adjuvant therapy result in only a 5-year survival rate of 50%. In this paper, we provide a review of the current technical aspects of surgical resection, and focus on recent studies of the epidemiology, molecular markers, prognostic factors and adjuvant therapy for childhood intracranial ependymomas and discuss their implications for current and future management strategies.