Patterns of Renal Dysfunction and Profile of Kidney Biopsies in Hematopoietic Stem Cell Transplant Recipients

Introduction: Post hematopoietic stem cell transplant (HSCT), kidney can be subjected to injury by various causes. Of these, graft versus host disease (GvHD) affecting the kidney is an under-recognized entity with no clear guidelines on its diagnosis, clinicopathological manifestations, and outcomes. Material and Methods: Out of 2,930 patients who underwent HSCT at our center between 2005 and 2020, kidney biopsy was performed in 19 allogenic and 5 autologous recipients. Results: The mean age of the cohort at transplant was 33.2 ± 7 years, and 15 (62%) were males. Median time to kidney biopsy from HSCT was 14 (IQR, 9–30) months. Aplastic anemia was the most common underlying hematological disease (54.2%). All 19 allogenic recipients were classified based on clinicopathological manifestations into either thrombotic microangiopathy (TMA, 12/19 [63%]) or nephrotic syndrome (NS, 7/19 [37%]) pattern. Glomerular tuft “mesangiolysis” was the dominant pattern of injury noted in 9/12 cases of TMA pattern. There was a predominance of acute microangiopathic changes restricted primarily to the glomerular compartment. Of the 7 patients with NS pattern, membranous nephropathy was seen in 4 (57%) and minimal change disease in 3 (43%) patients. Thirty-nine percent (7/18) stained positive for C4d which was predominantly glomerular. Allogenic recipients who did not receive immunosuppression (IS) for renal disease had a lower eGFR at biopsy, a longer latency between withdrawal of GvHD prophylaxis and biopsy, and were significantly at a higher risk of kidney failure (IS: 2/11, 18.1% vs. no IS: 2/6, 33.3%, p = 0.04). “Associated extra-renal GvHD” occurred in 11/19 (57.9%) allogenic recipients. Patients with “associated extra-renal GvHD” had significantly more deaths (6/11, 60% vs. 0, p = 0.02) but comparable renal outcomes. Conclusion: Renal GvHD can present with or without “associated extra-renal GvHD” after a prolonged period of withdrawal of GvHD prophylaxis, requiring careful diagnostic vigilance and consideration of IS

Treosulfan Exposure Predicts Thalassemia-free Survival In Patients With Beta Thalassemia Major (TM) Undergoing Allogeneic Hematopoietic Cell Transplantation

A toxicity-reduced conditioning regimen with Treosulfan, Fludarabine, and Thiotepa in patients with high-risk β- thalassemia major has significantly improved HCT outcomes. However, complications resulting from regimen-related toxicities (RRTs), mixed chimerism, and graft rejection remain a challenge. We evaluated the dose-exposure-response relationship of Treosulfan and its active metabolite S, S-EBDM, in a uniform cohort of patients with β-thalassemia major to identify whether therapeutic drug monitoring (TDM) and dose adjustment of Treosulfan is feasible. Plasma Treosulfan/S, S-EBDM levels were measured in seventy-seven patients using a validated LC-MS/MS method, and the PK parameters were estimated using nlmixr2. The influence of Treosulfan & S, S-EBDM exposure, and GSTA1/NQO1 polymorphisms on graft rejection, RRTs, chimerism status, and 1-year Overall Survival (OS), and Thalassemia Free Survival (TFS) were assessed. We observed that Treosulfan exposure was lower in patients with graft rejection than those without (1655 vs. 2037 mg*h/L, p=0.07). Pharmacodynamic modeling analysis to identify therapeutic cut-off revealed that Treosulfan exposure ≥1660 mg*hr/L was significantly associated with better 1-year TFS (97% vs. 81%, p=0.02) and a trend to better 1-year OS (90% vs. 69%, p=0.07). Further, multivariate analysis adjusting for known PreHCT risk factors also revealed Treosulfan exposure <1660mg*h/L (HR=3.23; 95% CI=1.12-9.34; p=0.03) and GSTA1*B variant genotype (HR=3.75; 95% CI=1.04-13.47; p=0.04) to be independent predictors for inferior 1-year TFS. We conclude that lower Treosulfan exposure increases the risk of graft rejection and early transplant-related mortality affecting TFS. As no RRTs were observed with increasing Treosulfan exposure, TDM-based dose adjustment could be feasible and beneficial

Prognostic plasma biomarkers of early complications and graft‐versus‐host disease in patients undergoing allogeneic hematopoietic stem cell transplantation

Abstract Early complications post hematopoietic stem cell transplantation (HSCT) such as sinusoidal obstruction syndrome (SOS) and graft versus host disease (GVHD) can be life threatening. Although several biomarkers have been identified to correlate with these complications and their response to treatment, these are yet to be used in clinical practice. Here, we evaluated circulating endothelial cells (CECs) (n = 26) and plasma biomarkers (ST2, REG3α, VCAM1, ICAM1, TIM3) (N = 210) at early time points, to determine their association with early complications post‐HSCT. Elevated CEC counts at the end of conditioning was associated with GVHD, indicating endothelial damage during HSCT. Plasma levels of REG3α, VCAM1, ICAM1, and TIM3 on day 14 (D14) and D14 ICAM1 and D28 ST2 were significantly higher in patients with SOS and aGVHD, respectively. Upon sub‐group analysis, D28 ST2, D14/D28 REG3α, and D14 ICAM1 levels were significantly higher in patients with gastrointestinal GVHD, while D28 ST2 was higher in those with skin/liver GVHD. High ST2 levels on D28 was significantly associated with non‐relapse mortality (NRM) and overall survival. Our results suggest that elevated ST2 levels on D28 could predict the likelihood of developing aGVHD and could influence NRM and OS

Impact of COVID-19 on heart failure hospitalization and outcome in India – A cardiological society of India study (CSI–HF in COVID 19 times study – “The COVID C–HF study”)

Objectives: The presentation and outcomes of acute decompensated heart failure (ADHF) during COVID times (June 2020 to Dec 2020) were compared with the historical control during the same period in 2019. Methods: Data of 4806 consecutive patients of acute HF admitted in 22 centres in the country were collected during this period. The admission patterns, aetiology, outcomes, prescription of guideline-directed medical therapy (GDMT) and interventions were analysed in this retrospective study. Results: Admissions for acute heart failure during the pandemic period in 2020 decreased by 20% compared to the corresponding six-month period in 2019, with numbers dropping from 2675 to 2131. However, no difference in the epidemiology was seen. The mean age of presentation in 2019 was 61.75 (±13.7) years, and 59.97 (±14.6) years in 2020. There was a significant decrease in the mean age of presentation (p = 0.001). Also. the proportion of male patients decreased significantly from 68.67% to 65.84% (p = 0.037). The in-hospital mortality for acute heart failure did not differ significantly between 2019 and 2020 (4.19% and 4.,97%) respectively (p = 0.19). The proportion of patients with HFrEF did not change in 2020 compared to 2019 (76.82% vs 75.74%, respectively). The average duration of hospital stay was 6.5 days. Conclusion: The outcomes of ADHF patients admitted during the Covid pandemic did not differ significantly. The length of hospital stay remained the same. The study highlighted the sub-optimal use of GDMT, though slightly improving over the last few years