PUB-0185 Outcome of children with acute lymphoblastic leukemia (ALL) treated on a risk-stratified protocol (PALL08) based on local experience

Purpose/Objective: To evaluate outcome of a protocol with risk-stratification based on results of our previous protocols and treatment strategy based on internationally published reports.Materials and Methods: Prospectively collected data on 180 children with ALL treated atour institution on our PALL08 protocol from 2008 and 2012 were analyzed.Results: Median age was 4.6 years (1.1-13.3, 5.5[1]0.24) and 58.3% were male. 160patients with B-ALL were categorized as low risk (LR) if within good-risk ranges for age and WBC count and if good-risk cytogenetics (hyperdiploidy or RUNX1-ETV6) were positive. Children with CNS3 status or with\u3e5% blasts on Day 14 BM evaluation were considered very high risk (VHR). All others, including children with CNS2, were considered high risk (HR). Twenty patients with T-ALL were stratified according to WBC count and CNS positivity into LR (4) and HR (16). Forty-six (25.6%), 103 (57.2%) and 10 (5.6%) children with B-ALL were treated on LR, HR and VHR protocols. Two patients (1.1%) died during induction. 172 patients (95.6%) achieved complete remission at end of induction. Ten (5.8%) patients relapsed at a median of 12.1months (3.5-37, 15.6[1]3.8) from remission. With a median follow up period of 2.3[1]0.124 years the overall survival (OS) was 86.2%and event free survival (EFS) was 83.8% compared to 82.5% and 69.9% on our previous protocol (OS p=0.1 and EFS p=0.02). There was no difference in survival between T- and B-ALL (OS=85.5% v. 93.8% and EFS=84.5% v. 78.9%; p=NS). CNS3 status was associated with poor outcome (EFS=40%) while trisomy 4/10 (EFS=97.4%) andRUNX1-ETV6(EFS=96.3%) conferred good prognosis. Infectious toxicity continues to be high.Conclusions: Although relapse rate on this protocol has decreased from our previous results (21.7%) longer term follow-up to look at relapse and toxicity outcomes is needed. Risk-stratified approach to ALL therapy based on local results is essential to improve outcomes

Multiple packed red blood cell (PRBC) transfusions in pediatric patients with acute myeloid leukemia (AML) result in a large transfusional iron dose with the potential for long-term organ dysfunction

The treatment of AML in children utilizes intensive chemotherapy and often myeloablative hematopoietic cell transplant (HCT). This results in significant myelosuppression, necessitating blood product transfusions. Repeated PRBC transfusions result in an increase in the body iron load which can lead to secondary hemochromatosis and organ dysfunction, particularly the heart and liver. Patients with hemoglobinopathies on chronic PRBC transfusions require iron chelation therapy usually after 10-20 units transfused. While patients with AML receive multiple transfusions, there is little data on the number or volume of PRBC transfused or the estimate of the iron load received. This retrospective study evaluated the number and volumes of PRBC transfusions administered to pediatric (\u3c14 \u3eyears) patients with AML, and calculated an estimate of the iron infused. Twenty-two patients with AML were diagnosed and treated at our institution between January 2010 and December 2012. There were 13 girls and 9 boys with a median age at diagnosis of 7.5 years (mean 6.95; range 0.4-13.2). One patient died early of sepsis without achieving complete remission (CR), and another died in CR following her last course of chemotherapy. Eight patients underwent HCT following myeloablative conditioning with busulfan, cyclophosphamide and etoposide; the remaining received chemotherapy alone. For patients who completed their chemotherapy the cumulative anthracycline dose was 450 mg/m2. Patients received a median of 17.5 PRBC transfusions (mean 16.6; range 3-28) during the course of their treatment. The cumulative PRBC transfusion volume was 185.4 ml/kg (mean 175.8; range 24.87 – 311.58), which translates to a median iron dose of 129.8 mg/kg (mean 123.1; range 17.4 – 218.1). The median serum ferritin level for those patients who were tested (n=12) was 1794.5 mg/L (mean 9074.5; range 699 – 78500). The median projected hepatic iron content, based on the transfused iron burden was 12.24 mg/g liver dry weight (mean 11.61; range 1.64 – 20.58); 17 (77.3%) patients had projected hepatic iron concentrations in excess of 7.0 mg/g, and none were 10 percentage point reduction in their left ventricular ejection fraction (LVEF; range -11% to -45%) however only one patient is on cardiac failure medications. Cardiac T2* MRI studies are being conducted to evaluate cardiac iron status for patients in this cohort. 13 patients were alive in CR at a median follow-up duration of 1.83 years (mean 2.16; range 0.27 – 3.43). Pediatric patients with AML receive large volumes of PRBC transfusions during their treatment and as a consequence accumulate high total body iron. This is in excess of the threshold for chelation therapy, used to prevent organ dysfunction, in patients with hemoglobinopathies. In addition, AML patient also receive significant cardio-toxic medications which may compound the effect of iron on the myocardium. With improvements in long term survival for patients with AML the addition of iron chelation therapy must be studied in order to prevent long term toxicity of AML therapy

Outcome Of hematopoietic cell transplantation (HCT) In pediatric patients with Hodgkin lymphoma (HL): Single institution results from Saudi Arabia

Most pediatric patients with Hodgkin lymphoma are cured of their disease with standard combined-modality first-line therapy. Those who relapse are subjected to salvage chemo-radiotherapy, and patients who respond often undergo either autologous or allogeneic HCT, with a reported outcome ranging from 40%-60%. Variables affecting the outcome of such patients are not clearly defined. This study retrospectively reviewed the clinical characteristics and outcome of patients who underwent HCT at our institution. Between 1995 and 2012, 29 pediatric (age \u3c14 years) patients with HL underwent HCT. This cohort included 24 boys and 5 girls. Their median ages at initial diagnosis and at HCT were 9.85 years (mean 8.85; range 3.6-13.75) and 12.18 years (mean 11.24; range 5.6-14.9), respectively. 28 patients had classic HL (23 nodular sclerosis, 3 mixed cellularity, 1 lymphocyte-depleted, and 1 lymphocyte-rich) and one patient had nodular lymphocyte-predominance HL. Ten had persistent/progressive disease following first line therapy, while 19 had relapsed following achievement of complete response (CR). For these patients median time to relapse from completion of first-line therapy was 16.9 months (mean 20.1; range 1.9-53.1). All patients received salvage chemotherapy and/or radiotherapy prior to HCT; fifteen patients achieved CR, 13 had a partial response and one had progressive disease. Two patients had allogeneic bone marrow (BM) grafts from matched-related donors, while the rest had autologous grafts (16 BM; 10 PBSC; 1 BM+PBSC) following chemotherapy-based myeloablative conditioning. Twelve patients have relapsed/progressed post-HCT at a median of 6.04 months (mean 11.8; range 1.02-71.4). Nine patients have died; eight because of disease progression and one due to sepsis post HCT. Only two patients died within the first 100 days post HCT, giving a Day-100 mortality rate of 6.8%. Two patients who relapsed after HCT were salvaged with chemo/radiotherapy and remain disease free 2.8 and 9.7 years later. The 5-year estimated overall survival (OS) from HCT for the whole cohort is 61.6%, with an event free survival (EFS) of 57.9%. Patients who had persistent/progressive disease at the end first-line therapy or relapsed \u3c6months off therapy had a worse OS and EFS as compared to those who relapsed later (OS 42.9% v. 75.3%, p=0.047 [Taron-Ware]; EFS 41.7% v. 60.8%, p=0.052 [Taron-Ware]). The outcome of patients with relapsed/refractory HL following HCT is encouraging, as a majority of patients survive free of their lymphoma. Timing of relapse/progression remains an important prognostic factor and patients who fail early may be considered for novel therapeutic approaches

Outcome Of hematopoietic cell transplantation (HCT) in pediatric patients with non-Hodgkin lymphoma (NHL): Single institution results from Saudi Arabia

Although HCT is an accepted component of the treatment strategy for relapsed/refractory pediatric NHL, only few studies have reported on the outcome for these patients. Most have reported on small numbers of patients, with survivals ranging from 27% to 75%. Clinical data were retrospectively retrieved for patients with NHL who had undergone HCT. Pre-HCT information, including pathologic diagnosis, response to first- and second-line therapy and pre-HCT disease status were collected, in addition to details of the transplant process and patient and disease outcome. Between 1996 and 2012, 28 pediatric patients with NHL underwent HCT. Primary diagnosis for these patients included Burkitt lymphoma (n=13), Large B-cell lymphoma (n=4), T-Lymphoblastic lymphoma (n=4), NK/T cell lymphoma/leukemia (n=3), Peripheral T-cell lymphoma (n=2), B-lymphoblastic lymphoma ((n=1) and anaplastic large cell lymphoma (n=1). The median age at HCT was 7.65 years (mean 8.2; range 1-14.3). Twenty had suffered a relapse of their disease, while five had primary progression; three patients with NK/T lymphomas underwent HCT as part of their first-line therapy. Fourteen patients had autologous (autoHCT) and 14 had allogeneic HCT (alloHCT). Among alloHCT, 11 had matched-related grafts while 3 had unrelated umbilical cord blood (UCB) grafts. At the time of HCT, 23 patients were in CR (CR1=7, CR2=15, CR3=1), and 5 had partial responses. HCT conditioning was myeloablative for all patients; in 18 patients, it was TBI-based. Fourteen patients suffered recurrence of their lymphoma post HCT at a median of 1.17 months from HCT (mean 6.2; range 0.63-42); 4 died in CR due to transplant-related toxicity, of these 3 were post alloHCT and one post autoHCT. Three patients have developed secondary malignancies (SMN; 2 post alloHCT and 1 post autoHCT). 10 patients were alive at last follow-up, all of whom were in CR. The 5-year estimated OS from SCT is 38.7%, with and EFS of 26%. There was no difference in 5-year OS or EFS among patients who received alloHCT v. autoHCT (OS 28.6% v. 49%; p=0.53, EFS 14.3% v. 37.5%; p=0.25) and among patients who did or did not receive TBI (OS 33.3% v. 48%; p=0.37, EFS 27.8% v. 18.8%; p=0.66). OS/EFS for patients with Burkitt lymphoma was 23.1%. Of the three patients with NK/T cell lymphoma two remain alive in CR 13.7 and 5.1 years after HCT. The outcome of relapsed/refractory non-Hodgkin lymphoma of childhood remains suboptimal. In addition to a high post-HCT relapse rate of 50%, HCT-related toxic mortality and SMN contribute to the poor outcome for this cohort of patients

Incidence and severity of crucial late effects after allogeneic HSCT for malignancy under the age of 3 years: TBI is what really matters

Transplantation and immunomodulatio

Outcomes after unrelated umbilical cord blood transplantation for children with osteopetrosis

Hematopoietic stem cell transplantation (HSCT) is the only curative treatment for most children with osteopetrosis (OP). Timing of HSCT is critical; therefore, umbilical cord blood transplantation (UCBT) is an attractive option. We analyzed outcomes after UCBT in 51 OP children. Median age at UCBT was 6 months. Seventy-seven percent of the cord blood grafts had 0 or 1 HLA disparity with the recipient. Conditioning regimen was myeloablative (mostly busulfan-based in 84% and treosulfan-based in 10%). Antithymocyte globulin was given to 90% of patients. Median number of total nucleated and CD34+ cells infused was 14 × 107/kg and 3.4 × 105/kg, respectively. Median follow-up for survivors was 74 months. Cumulative incidence (CI) of neutrophil recovery was 67% with a median time to recovery of 23 days; 33% of patients had graft failure, 81% of engrafted patients had full donor engraftment, and 19% had mixed donor chimerism. Day 100 CI of acute graft-versus-host disease (grades II to IV) was 31% and 6-year CI of chronic graft-versus-host disease was 21%. Mechanical ventilation was required in 28%, and veno-occlusive disease was diagnosed in 16% of cases. Six-year overall survival rate was 46%. Comparative studies with other alternative donors should be performed to evaluate whether UCBT remains a valid alternative for children with OP without an HLA-matched donor

Incidence and severity of crucial late effects after allogeneic HSCT for malignancy under the age of 3 years : TBI is what really matters

Younger children are considered to be more vulnerable to late effects (LE), which prompted us to study LE in patients after haematopoietic stem cell transplantation (HSCT) for a haematological malignancy before the age of 3. In this multicentre EBMT study, cumulative incidence (CI) and severity of endocrine LE, central nervous system complications and secondary malignancies at 5, 10, 15 and 20 years of follow-up were assessed. Risk factors (RF) like gender, diagnosis, age at and year of HSCT, TBI- or chemo-conditioning and GVHD were analysed. CI of any LE was 0.30, 0.52, 0.66 and 0.72 at 5, 10, 15 and 20 years after HSCT, respectively. In 25% of the patients, LE were severe at a median follow-up of 10.4 years. In multivariate analysis, only TBI was a RF for having any LE and for thyroid dysfunction and growth disturbance. Female gender was a RF for delayed pubertal development. Some more insight could be gained by descriptive analysis regarding the role of TBI and GVHD on the severity of LE. Although only five selected LE have been studied and median follow-up is relatively short, the incidence and severity of these LE are considerable but not different from what has been found in older children and TBI is the main RF.Bone Marrow Transplantation advance online publication, 27 June 2016; doi:10.1038/bmt.2016.139

Hematopoietic stem cell transplantation for infantile osteopetrosis

We report the international experience in outcomes after related and unrelated hematopoietic transplantation for infantile osteopetrosis in 193 patients. Thirty-four percent of transplants used grafts from HLA-matched siblings, 13% from HLA-mismatched relatives, 12% from HLA-matched, and 41% from HLA-mismatched unrelated donors. The median age at transplantation was 12 months. Busulfan and cyclophosphamide was the most common conditioning regimen. Long-termsurvival was higher afterHLA-matched sibling compared to alternative donor transplantation. There were no differences in survival after HLAmismatched related, HLA-matched unrelated, or mismatched unrelated donor transplantation. The 5- and 10-year probabilities of survival were 62% and 62% after HLA-matched siblingand42%and39%after alternative donor transplantation (P5.01 andP5.002, respectively). Graft failurewasthemostcommon cause of death, accounting for50%of deaths after HLA-matched sibling and43%of deaths after alternative donor transplantation. The day-28 incidence of neutrophil recovery was 66% after HLA-matched sibling and 61% after alternative donor transplantation (P5.49). The median age of surviving patients is 7 years. Of evaluable surviving patients,70%are visually impaired;10%have impaired hearing and gross motor delay. Nevertheless, 65% reported performance scores of 90 or 100, and in 17%, a score of 80 at last contact. Most survivors >5 years are attending mainstream or specialized schools. Rates of veno-occlusive disease and interstitial pneumonitis were high at 20%. Though allogeneic transplantation results in long-term survival with acceptable social function, strategies to lower graft failure and hepatic and pulmonary toxicity are urgently needed