Granulocytic sarcoma with unusual localizations (breast and stomach) without bone marrow involvement after the allogeneic transplantation

Granulocytic sarcoma (GS) is a rare extramedullary solid tumor composed of immature myeloid cell that is associated with acute myeloid leukemia or myelodysplastic syndrome. Espe­cially, the involvement of the breast as a pattern of relapse after allogeneic bone marrow transplantation ( allo SCT) is extremely rare. We report the case of a 57-year-old woman who palpated a painless lump in the superior quadrant of her right breast. Her past medical history was a myelodysplastic syndrome ( MDS) treated with bone marrow transplantation. Imaging work-up by mammogram and ultrasonography ( US ) showed solitary mass suspect of malignancy in breast. Tru-cut biopsy was performed from the suspect palpable mass of the right breast. Histologic findings were compatible with a granulocytic sarcoma in breast. While she was also evaluated for mass in the breast, also investigated by endoscopy for the symptoms of gastrointestinal system. The endoscopic biopsy showed diffuse neoplastic infiltration similar the pathology of the breast. GS of the breast is a rare extramedullary involvement of hematologic diseases. There are no the specific radyologic features in the presentation with GS of the breast. Our case also showed that careful histopathological review along with all panel of immunohistochemistry is extremely important for diagnose.</jats:p

Effects of bone marrow fibrosis and angiogenetic structure on autologous hematopoietic stem cell engraftment

Purpose: Hematopoietic stem cell (HSC) engraftment is influenced by many factors. We investigated the effects of bone marrow fibrosis and angiogenetic structure on engraftment in patients with hematological malignancies. Materials and Methods: Data were collected from 34 patients (20 males and 14 females) who underwent autologous HSC transplantation. Bone marrow myelofibrosis was graded from 0 to 3, angiogenesis was quantified using a stereological method in the most recent bone marrow biopsy before the transplantation. Patients were categorized into two groups according to intensity of angiogenesis parameters. Results: Half of the patients had fibrosis and majority had multiple myeloma (73.5%). Eleven patients had grade 1, six had grade 2 myelofibrosis. The engraftment day (ED) for platelets and erythrocytes was significantly different between the grade 2 fibrosis and non-fibrosis groups. VSD and NVES levels were significantly higher in the grades 1 and 2 fibrosis groups than the no fibrosis group. While the overall survival time was shorter in the grade 2 fibrosis group than the others, the difference was not statistically significant. Conclusion: Bone marrow fibrosis was found to be independent risk factor. It may have a negative effect on platelet and erythrocyte engraftment time of autologous transplantation process but this effect does not influence survival

Increased concentration of soluble CD40 ligand in preeclampsia

Preeclampsia has been associated with increased platelet activation detected before disease onset. Platelets are involved in hemostasis and also directly initiate an inflammatory response of the vessel wall. Inappropriate activation of platelets may be involved in pathogenesis in preeclampsia by promoting coagulation and thrombosis, and also as a mediator of inflammation. Platelets may release inflammatory mediators such as soluble CD40 ligand. The plasma level of soluble CD40 ligand was investigated during preeclamptic (n =20) and normal pregnancies (n = 20) to emphasize inflammatory response in preeclampsia. The mean soluble CD40 ligand levels were 1.08 +/- 0.43 ng/mL in patients with preeclampsia and 0.76 +/- 0.24 ng/mL in healthy pregnant women, which was statistically significant (P =. 01). To clarify whether inflammation may cause inappropriate endothelial cell activation or inappropriate endothelial cell activation may start this inflammatory response, future studies are needed in a larger study population

Fatal disseminated mucormycosis in a patient with mantle cell non-hodgkin's lymphoma: an autopsy case

A patient with mantle cell non-Hodgkin's lymphoma presented herself with fever, nausea, right upper quadrant pain on the 7th day of R-CHOP chemotherapy. After hospitalization with the suspicion of acute cholecystitis, she received antibiotherapy with G-CSF because of emerging neutropenia at the 10th day of chemotherapy. Abdominal computed tomography revealed small infarcts in the spleen and kidneys. The echymotic lesion which developed on her right lateral malleolus, became bullous in the following days and treated as ecthyma gangrenosum. Altough the patient was afebrile with a normal neutrophil count on the third day of antibiotherapy, she developed acute renal failure and deteriorated rapidly. The patient underwent hemodialysis but expired on the 10th day of hospitalization. Post mortem autopsy findings showed ischemic infarction and necrosis of parenchyma due to mycotic thrombosis of arteries and veins of many organs (heart, lung, diaphgram, kidneys, spleen, gut mucosa) as well as invasion of vessel walls and parenchyma by mucor. We reviewed mucormycosis in the light of this case

Is the platelet-to-lymphocyte ratio a new prognostic marker in multiple myeloma?

BACKGROUND: Recent reports showed neutrophil-to-lymphocyte ratio (NLR), platelet-to-lymphocyte ratio (PLR), and monocyte-to-lymphocyte ratio (MLR), as a predictor of progression-free survival (PFS) and overall survival (OS) in various malignancies. MATERIALS AND METHODS: We retrospectively examined the PLR, NLR, and MLR in a cohort of 186 newly diagnosed multiple myeloma (MM) patients. This study investigated the prognostic relevance of NLR, PLR, and MLR in MM patients. NLR, PLR, and MLR were calculated from whole blood counts before therapy. The Kaplan–Meier curves and multivariate Cox models were used for the evaluation of survival. RESULTS: Applying cutoff of 1.9 (NLR), 120.00 (PLR), and 0.27 (MLR), decreased PLR showed a negative impact on the outcome. Decreased PLR is an independent predictor for PFS and OS. There were no significant differences in median survival between the high and low NLR (P = 0.80) and MLR (P = 0.87) groups. CONCLUSIONS: In this study, thrombocytopenia and low PLR are associated with poor survival in MM patients does this P value apply to thrombocytopenia or low PLR and may serve as the cost-effective prognostic biomarker

A Comparison of Fresenius Com.Tec Cell and Spectra Optia Cell Separators for Autologous and Allogeneic Stem Cell Collections: Single Center Experience.

Peripheral blood is the prefered source for hematopoietic stem cells for hematopoietic stem cell transplantation. The efficiency of peripheral blood stem cell (PBSC) collection can vary among devices. In this study we aimed to compare feasibility and effectivity of apheresis procedures of the different systems. Two apheresis systems [Com.Tec (Fresenius Healthcare) and Spectra Optia (Caridian BCT)] were used in our center for the collection of PBSCs for autologous and allogeneic transplantation. We retrospectively analysed 190 apheresis procedures performed in healthy donors and patients between June 2012 and November 2014 in Department of Hematology, Dokuz Eylul University. PBSCS were collected by Fresenius cell separator (64 procedure) or Spectra Optia cell separator (126 procedure). Mobilization treatments were G-CSF (26.8%), cyclophosphamide plus G-CSF (48.4%), prelixafor plus G-CSF (14.7%), ESHAP (10%) and others. Patient and donor characteristics (age, weight, volume processed, disease, mobilization regimes) were similar in Fresenius and Spectra Optia apheresis groups. Altough both collected PBSCs efficiently, the amount of CD34+ cell in product collected by Spectra Optia device was significantly higher (p<0.05) and product volume was lower than Fresenius Com.Tec significantly (p<0.05). CD34+ collection efficiency with Spectra Optia was significantly higher than Fresenius Com.Tec (CE2: 87%, 70%, p=0.033) regarding all procedures. High collection efficiency and low product volume may be a significant characteristic of Spectra Optia device (mean 187mL, product CD34+ cell: 1576 mu L)

IPSET-thrombosis better identifies thrombosis-free survival: A Turkish cohort

© 2015 Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.Introduction Essential thrombocythemia (ET) is the most common of the myeloproliferative neoplasms. For better predicting the occurrence of thrombotic events, an International Prognostic Score of Thrombosis for ET (IPSET-Thrombosis) was recently developed. We aimed to investigate the validity of IPSET-Thrombosis in a Turkish patient cohort and to compare the efficacy of IPSET-Thrombosis and conventional risk scoring systems in predicting thrombosis-free survival. Patients and Methods We retrospectively evaluated the clinical characteristics and risk factors for thrombosis in 112 Turkish patients. Median thrombosis-free survival and Harrell C concordance indexes were calculated for both conventional and IPSET-Thrombosis. Results Median age of 112 patients included in the study was 61 (range, 27-90) years at the time of diagnosis. When patients were stratified according to the conventional risk stratification system, 43.8% of patients were in the low-risk group and 56.2% in the high-risk group. A total of 22.4% of low-risk and 42.9% of high-risk patients had at least one thromboembolic event. When patients were stratified according to the IPSET-Thrombosis, 33% were in the low-risk group, 26.8% in the intermediate-risk group, and 40.2% in the high-risk group. Considering IPSET-Thrombosis risk groups, 5.4% of low-risk, 26.7% of intermediate-risk, and 66.2% of high-risk patients had at least one thromboembolic event. Regarding IPSET-Thrombosis risk groups, 10-year thrombosis-free survival was 86.8% for low-risk, 39.4% for intermediate-risk, and 32.9% for high-risk groups (P <.001). Harrell C concordance indexes of conventional and IPSET-Thrombosis were 0.60 and 0.77, respectively. Conclusion By validating the reproducibility of IPSET-Thrombosis in Turkish ET patients, we found that IPSET-Thrombosis identifies thrombosis-free survival better than the conventional risk stratification system

Daratumumab plus pomalidomide and dexamethasone versus pomalidomide and dexamethasone alone in previously treated multiple myeloma (APOLLO): an open-label, randomised, phase 3 trial

Background In a phase lb study, intravenous daratumumab plus pomalidomide and dexamethasone induced a very good partial response or better rate of 42% and was well tolerated in patients with heavily pretreated multiple myeloma. We aimed to evaluate whether daratumumab plus pomalidomide and dexamethasone would improve progression-free survival versus pomalidomide and dexamethasone alone in patients with previously treated multiple myeloma.Methods In this ongoing, open-label, randomised, phase 3 trial (APOLLO) done at 48 academic centres and hospitals across 12 European countries, eligible patients were aged 18 years or older, had relapsed or refractory multiple myeloma with measurable disease, had an Eastern Cooperative Oncology Group performance status of 0-2, had at least one previous line of therapy, including lenalidomide and a proteasome inhibitor, had a partial response or better to one or more previous lines of antimyeloma therapy, and were refractory to lenalidomide if only one previous line of therapy was received. Patients were randomly assigned (1:1) by an interactive web-response system in a random block size of two or four to receive pomalidomide and dexamethasone alone or daratumumab plus pomalidomide and dexamethasone. Randomisation was stratified by number of previous lines of therapy and International Staging System disease stage. All patients received oral pomalidomide (4 mg, once daily on days 1-21) and oral dexamethasone (40 mg once daily on days 1, 8, 15, and 22; 20 mg for those aged 75 years or older) at each 28-day cycle. The daraturnurnab plus pomalidomide and dexamethasone group received daraturnurnab (1800 mg subcutaneously or 16 mg/kg intravenously) weekly during cycles 1 and 2, every 2 weeks during cycles 3-6, and every 4 weeks thereafter until disease progression or unacceptable toxicity. The primary endpoint was progression-free survival in the intention-to-treat population. Safety was analysed in all patients who received at least one dose of study medication. This trial is registered with ClinicalTrials.gov, NCT03180736.Findings Between June 22, 2017, and June 13, 2019, 304 patients (median age 67 years [IQR 60-72]; 161 [53%] men and 143 [47%] women) were randomly assigned to the daratumumab plus pomalidomide and dexamethasone group (n=151) or the pomalidomide and dexamethasone group (n=153). At a median follow-up of 16.9 months (IQR 14.4-20.6), the daratumumab plus pomalidomide and dexamethasone group showed improved progression-free survival compared with the pomalidomide and dexamethasone group (median 12.4 months [95% CI 8 3-19.3] vs 6.9 months [5.5-9.3]; hazard ratio 0.63 [95% CI 0 - 47-0 -85], two-sided p=0 - 0018). The most common grade 3 or 4 adverse events were neutropenia (101 [68%] of 149 patients in the daratumumab plus pomalidomide and dexamethasone group vs 76 [51%] of 150 patients in the pomalidomide and dexamethasone group), anaemia (25 [17%] vs 32 [21%]), and thrombocytopenia (26 [17%] vs 27 [18%]). Serious adverse events occurred in 75 (50%) of 149 patients in the daratumumab plus pomalidomide and dexamethasone group versus 59 (39%) of 150 patients in the pomalidomide and dexamethasone group; pneumonia (23 [15%] vs 12 [8%] patients) and lower respiratory tract infection (18 [12%] vs 14 [9%]) were most common. Treatment-emergent deaths were reported in 11 (7%) patients in the daratumumab plus pomalidomide and dexamethasone group versus 11 (7%) patients in the pomalidomide and dexamethasone group.Interpretation Among patients with relapsed or refractory multiple myeloma, daratumumab plus pomalidomide and dexamethasone reduced the risk of disease progression or death versus pomalidomide and dexamethasone alone and could be considered a new treatment option in this setting. Copyright (C) 2021 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved