Guideline adherence and survival of patients with candidaemia in Europe: results from the ECMM Candida III multinational European observational cohort study

© 2022 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.[Background] The European Confederation of Medical Mycology (ECMM) collected data on epidemiology, risk factors, treatment, and outcomes of patients with culture-proven candidaemia across Europe to assess how adherence to guideline recommendations is associated with outcomes.[Methods] In this observational cohort study, 64 participating hospitals located in 20 European countries, with the number of eligible hospitals per country determined by population size, included the first ten consecutive adults with culture-proven candidaemia after July 1, 2018, and entered data into the ECMM Candida Registry (FungiScope CandiReg). We assessed ECMM Quality of Clinical Candidaemia Management (EQUAL Candida) scores reflecting adherence to recommendations of the European Society of Clinical Microbiology and Infectious Diseases and the Infectious Diseases Society of America guidelines.[Findings] 632 patients with candidaemia were included from 64 institutions. Overall 90-day mortality was 43% (265/617), and increasing age, intensive care unit admission, point increases in the Charlson comorbidity index score, and Candida tropicalis as causative pathogen were independent baseline predictors of mortality in Cox regression analysis. EQUAL Candida score remained an independent predictor of mortality in the multivariable Cox regression analyses after adjusting for the baseline predictors, even after restricting the analysis to patients who survived for more than 7 days after diagnosis (adjusted hazard ratio 1·08 [95% CI 1·04–1·11; p<0·0001] in patients with a central venous catheter and 1·09 [1·05–1·13; p<0·0001] in those without one, per one score point decrease). Median duration of hospital stay was 15 days (IQR 4–30) after diagnosis of candidaemia and was extended specifically for completion of parenteral therapy in 100 (16%) of 621 patients. Initial echinocandin treatment was associated with lower overall mortality and longer duration of hospital stay among survivors than treatment with other antifungals.[Interpretation] Although overall mortality in patients with candidaemia was high, our study indicates that adherence to clinical guideline recommendations, reflected by higher EQUAL Candida scores, might increase survival. New antifungals, with similar activity as current echinocandins but with longer half-lives or oral bioavailability, are needed to reduce duration of hospital stay.Scynexis.Peer reviewe

Successful mRNA SARS-Cov-2 vaccine rechallenge after a first episode of immune thrombocytopenic purpura

In 2021, the world experienced the most extensive vaccination campaign to defeat COVID-19. Many cases of idiopathic thrombocytopenia have been reported following injections of SARS-Cov-2 mRNA vaccine. We present the case of a 73-year-old woman with de novo ITP after a first injection of SARS-Cov-2 mRNA vaccine (Moderna vaccine) who experienced a successful rechallenge of SARS-Cov-2 mRNA vaccine (Pfizer vaccine) a few months later

Anti-CD19 CAR T-Cell Therapy for Patients with Richter Syndrome: A Lysa Study from the Descar-T Registry

International audienceBackground Richter syndrome (RS) refers to the onset of aggressive lymphoma, mostly diffuse large B-cell lymphoma (DLBCL), in patients with chronic lymphocytic leukemia (CLL). The outcome of RS patients is usually very poor with short survival (typically 2. Tocilizumab was administered to 9 (75%) patients. Five (42%) patients had ICANS, 3 (25%) with grade > 3. Regarding hematotoxicity, 6 (50%) patients presented with grade > 2 thrombocytopenia, 5 (42%) with grade > 2 anemia, and 7 with (58%) grade > 2 neutropenia. One case of macrophage activation syndrome was reported. Three patients were admitted to intensive care. A total of 5 (42%) patients had infections. After a median follow-up of 1.6 months (range, 0-23), 8 (67%) patients were alive, 4 (33%) patients died (2 from CRS and 2 from disease progression).Conclusions CD19-directed CAR T-cell therapy showed high response rates in our series of heavily pretreated RS patients. Frequency of CAR T-cell-specific adverse events was in the range of what is observed in de novo DLBCL while severity appeared higher (Schuster et al., NEJM 2019; Neelapu et al., NEJM 2017). Larger cohort with longer follow-up and prospective trials are warranted to confirm these observations

Anti-CD19 CAR T-Cell Therapy for Patients with Richter Syndrome: A Lysa Study from the Descar-T Registry

International audienceBackground Richter syndrome (RS) refers to the onset of aggressive lymphoma, mostly diffuse large B-cell lymphoma (DLBCL), in patients with chronic lymphocytic leukemia (CLL). The outcome of RS patients is usually very poor with short survival (typically 2. Tocilizumab was administered to 9 (75%) patients. Five (42%) patients had ICANS, 3 (25%) with grade > 3. Regarding hematotoxicity, 6 (50%) patients presented with grade > 2 thrombocytopenia, 5 (42%) with grade > 2 anemia, and 7 with (58%) grade > 2 neutropenia. One case of macrophage activation syndrome was reported. Three patients were admitted to intensive care. A total of 5 (42%) patients had infections. After a median follow-up of 1.6 months (range, 0-23), 8 (67%) patients were alive, 4 (33%) patients died (2 from CRS and 2 from disease progression).Conclusions CD19-directed CAR T-cell therapy showed high response rates in our series of heavily pretreated RS patients. Frequency of CAR T-cell-specific adverse events was in the range of what is observed in de novo DLBCL while severity appeared higher (Schuster et al., NEJM 2019; Neelapu et al., NEJM 2017). Larger cohort with longer follow-up and prospective trials are warranted to confirm these observations

AML-262 Pivekimab Sunirine (PVEK, IMGN632) triplet with azacitidine and venetoclax shows broad activity in adverse genetic subsets of relapsed/refractory acute myeloid leukemia and reduced infusion-related reactions

Context: Pivekimab sunirine (PVEK, IMGN632) is a first-in-class ADC comprising a CD123 high-affinity antibody, a cleavable linker, and an IGN (indolinobenzodiazepine pseudodimer) payload. PVEK with azacitidine (AZA) and venetoclax (VEN) is a novel triplet that has demonstrated anti-leukemia activity in relapsed/refractory AML patients. Objective: Evaluate the anti-leukemia activity in genetic subgroups of AML and safety of the triplet. Intervention: Patients with relapsed/refractory AML received PVEK+AZA+VEN in a three-drug escalation over a 28-day cycle: PVEK 0.015 or 0.045 mg/kg day 7, AZA 50 or 75 mg/m2 days 1–7, and VEN 400 mg for 8, 14, or 21 days. Results: Twenty-nine patients (median age 67 y, ELN adverse 62%, prior VEN 48%) were in higher-intensity cohorts (PVEK 0.045 mg/kg and/or VEN for 14 or 21 days). The overall response rate (ORR) was 59% (4 CR, 6 CRh, 1 CRp, 6 MLFS) and the composite complete remission rate (CCR, CR+CRh+CRp+CRi) was 38%. Higher rates are seen in patients with FLT3-ITD (n=9, ORR 89%, CCR 78%), IDH2 (n=4, ORR 75%, CCR 75%), and WT1 (n=7, ORR 57%, CCR 43%) mutations. Lower rates are seen in patients with monosomy 7/abn7q (n=6, ORR 17%, CCR 17%), TP53 (n=4, ORR 25%, CCR 25%), and ASXL1 (n=6, ORR 67%, CCR 17%) deletions or mutations. The safety profile for the PVEK triplet is similar to AZA+VEN. No VOD, TLS, or CRS was reported. IRRs were reported in 33% (n=17, one grade 4) of patients given 1 dose of dexamethasone (8 mg) as premedication (n=51); these IRRs were most frequently tachycardia and chills, with no anaphylactic reactions reported. Following the data cut-off, there was a second grade 4 IRR, and the prophylactic regimen was increased with two additional doses of dexamethasone on the day prior to the PVEK dose. The IRR rate has dropped to 8% (3 of 38), with no grade 3+; all were grades 1–2 that resolved with limited intervention (P&lt;0.01). Conclusions: The PVEK triplet with AZA+VEN demonstrates anti-leukemic activity across multiple high-risk genetic subsets of relapsed/refractory AML. Prophylactic steroids added on day –1 have significantly reduced IRRs. Expansion cohorts are now enrolling for untreated and relapsed AML patients (NCT04086264).</p

AML-262 Pivekimab Sunirine (PVEK, IMGN632) triplet with azacitidine and venetoclax shows broad activity in adverse genetic subsets of relapsed/refractory acute myeloid leukemia and reduced infusion-related reactions

Context: Pivekimab sunirine (PVEK, IMGN632) is a first-in-class ADC comprising a CD123 high-affinity antibody, a cleavable linker, and an IGN (indolinobenzodiazepine pseudodimer) payload. PVEK with azacitidine (AZA) and venetoclax (VEN) is a novel triplet that has demonstrated anti-leukemia activity in relapsed/refractory AML patients. Objective: Evaluate the anti-leukemia activity in genetic subgroups of AML and safety of the triplet. Intervention: Patients with relapsed/refractory AML received PVEK+AZA+VEN in a three-drug escalation over a 28-day cycle: PVEK 0.015 or 0.045 mg/kg day 7, AZA 50 or 75 mg/m2 days 1–7, and VEN 400 mg for 8, 14, or 21 days. Results: Twenty-nine patients (median age 67 y, ELN adverse 62%, prior VEN 48%) were in higher-intensity cohorts (PVEK 0.045 mg/kg and/or VEN for 14 or 21 days). The overall response rate (ORR) was 59% (4 CR, 6 CRh, 1 CRp, 6 MLFS) and the composite complete remission rate (CCR, CR+CRh+CRp+CRi) was 38%. Higher rates are seen in patients with FLT3-ITD (n=9, ORR 89%, CCR 78%), IDH2 (n=4, ORR 75%, CCR 75%), and WT1 (n=7, ORR 57%, CCR 43%) mutations. Lower rates are seen in patients with monosomy 7/abn7q (n=6, ORR 17%, CCR 17%), TP53 (n=4, ORR 25%, CCR 25%), and ASXL1 (n=6, ORR 67%, CCR 17%) deletions or mutations. The safety profile for the PVEK triplet is similar to AZA+VEN. No VOD, TLS, or CRS was reported. IRRs were reported in 33% (n=17, one grade 4) of patients given 1 dose of dexamethasone (8 mg) as premedication (n=51); these IRRs were most frequently tachycardia and chills, with no anaphylactic reactions reported. Following the data cut-off, there was a second grade 4 IRR, and the prophylactic regimen was increased with two additional doses of dexamethasone on the day prior to the PVEK dose. The IRR rate has dropped to 8% (3 of 38), with no grade 3+; all were grades 1–2 that resolved with limited intervention (P<0.01). Conclusions: The PVEK triplet with AZA+VEN demonstrates anti-leukemic activity across multiple high-risk genetic subsets of relapsed/refractory AML. Prophylactic steroids added on day –1 have significantly reduced IRRs. Expansion cohorts are now enrolling for untreated and relapsed AML patients (NCT04086264)

Guideline adherence and survival of patients with candidaemia in Europe: results from the ECMM Candida III multinational European observational cohort study

Background: The European Confederation of Medical Mycology (ECMM) collected data on epidemiology, risk factors, treatment, and outcomes of patients with culture-proven candidaemia across Europe to assess how adherence to guideline recommendations is associated with outcomes. Methods: In this observational cohort study, 64 participating hospitals located in 20 European countries, with the number of eligible hospitals per country determined by population size, included the first ten consecutive adults with culture-proven candidaemia after July 1, 2018, and entered data into the ECMM Candida Registry (FungiScope CandiReg). We assessed ECMM Quality of Clinical Candidaemia Management (EQUAL Candida) scores reflecting adherence to recommendations of the European Society of Clinical Microbiology and Infectious Diseases and the Infectious Diseases Society of America guidelines. Findings: 632 patients with candidaemia were included from 64 institutions. Overall 90-day mortality was 43% (265/617), and increasing age, intensive care unit admission, point increases in the Charlson comorbidity index score, and Candida tropicalis as causative pathogen were independent baseline predictors of mortality in Cox regression analysis. EQUAL Candida score remained an independent predictor of mortality in the multivariable Cox regression analyses after adjusting for the baseline predictors, even after restricting the analysis to patients who survived for more than 7 days after diagnosis (adjusted hazard ratio 1·08 [95% CI 1·04-1·11; p&lt;0·0001] in patients with a central venous catheter and 1·09 [1·05-1·13; p&lt;0·0001] in those without one, per one score point decrease). Median duration of hospital stay was 15 days (IQR 4-30) after diagnosis of candidaemia and was extended specifically for completion of parenteral therapy in 100 (16%) of 621 patients. Initial echinocandin treatment was associated with lower overall mortality and longer duration of hospital stay among survivors than treatment with other antifungals. Interpretation: Although overall mortality in patients with candidaemia was high, our study indicates that adherence to clinical guideline recommendations, reflected by higher EQUAL Candida scores, might increase survival. New antifungals, with similar activity as current echinocandins but with longer half-lives or oral bioavailability, are needed to reduce duration of hospital stay. Funding: Scynexis

Guideline adherence and survival of patients with candidaemia in Europe : results from the ECMM Candida III multinational European observational cohort study

International audienceBackground: The European Confederation of Medical Mycology (ECMM) collected data on epidemiology, risk factors, treatment, and outcomes of patients with culture-proven candidaemia across Europe to assess how adherence to guideline recommendations is associated with outcomes.Methods: In this observational cohort study, 64 participating hospitals located in 20 European countries, with the number of eligible hospitals per country determined by population size, included the first ten consecutive adults with culture-proven candidaemia after July 1, 2018, and entered data into the ECMM Candida Registry (FungiScope CandiReg). We assessed ECMM Quality of Clinical Candidaemia Management (EQUAL Candida) scores reflecting adherence to recommendations of the European Society of Clinical Microbiology and Infectious Diseases and the Infectious Diseases Society of America guidelines.Findings: 632 patients with candidaemia were included from 64 institutions. Overall 90-day mortality was 43% (265/617), and increasing age, intensive care unit admission, point increases in the Charlson comorbidity index score, and Candida tropicalis as causative pathogen were independent baseline predictors of mortality in Cox regression analysis. EQUAL Candida score remained an independent predictor of mortality in the multivariable Cox regression analyses after adjusting for the baseline predictors, even after restricting the analysis to patients who survived for more than 7 days after diagnosis (adjusted hazard ratio 1·08 [95% CI 1·04-1·11; p<0·0001] in patients with a central venous catheter and 1·09 [1·05-1·13; p<0·0001] in those without one, per one score point decrease). Median duration of hospital stay was 15 days (IQR 4-30) after diagnosis of candidaemia and was extended specifically for completion of parenteral therapy in 100 (16%) of 621 patients. Initial echinocandin treatment was associated with lower overall mortality and longer duration of hospital stay among survivors than treatment with other antifungals.Interpretation: Although overall mortality in patients with candidaemia was high, our study indicates that adherence to clinical guideline recommendations, reflected by higher EQUAL Candida scores, might increase survival. New antifungals, with similar activity as current echinocandins but with longer half-lives or oral bioavailability, are needed to reduce duration of hospital stay

Other malignancies in the history of CLL: an international multicenter study conducted by ERIC, the European Research Initiative on CLL, in HARMONY

Background: Patients with chronic lymphocytic leukemia (CLL) have a higher risk of developing other malignancies (OMs) compared to the general population. However, the impact of CLL-related risk factors and CLL-directed treatment is still unclear and represents the focus of this work. Methods: We conducted a retrospective international multicenter study to assess the incidence of OMs and detect potential risk factors in 19,705 patients with CLL, small lymphocytic lymphoma, or high-count CLL-like monoclonal B-cell lymphocytosis, diagnosed between 2000 and 2016. Data collection took place between October 2020 and March 2022. Findings: In 129,254 years of follow-up after CLL diagnosis, 3513 OMs were diagnosed (27.2 OMs/1000 person-years). The most common hematological OMs were Richter transformation, myelodysplastic syndrome (MDS) and acute myeloid leukemia (AML). Non-melanoma skin (NMSC) and prostate cancers were the most common solid tumors (STs). The only predictor for MDS and AML development was treatment with fludarabine and cyclophosphamide with/without rituximab (FC ± R) (OR = 3.7; 95% CI = 2.79–4.91; p < 0.001). STs were more frequent in males and patients with unmutated immunoglobulin heavy variable genes (OR = 1.77; 95% CI = 1.49–2.11; p < 0.001/OR = 1.89; 95% CI = 1.6–2.24; p < 0.001). CLL-directed treatment was associated with non-melanoma skin and prostate cancers (OR = 1.8; 95% CI = 1.36–2.41; p < 0.001/OR = 2.11; 95% CI = 1.12–3.97; p = 0.021). In contrast, breast cancers were more frequent in untreated patients (OR = 0.17; 95% CI = 0.08–0.33; p < 0.001). Patients with CLL and an OM had inferior overall survival (OS) than those without. AML and MDS conferred the worst OS (p < 0.001). Interpretation: OMs in CLL impact on OS. Treatment for CLL increased the risk for AML/MDS, prostate cancer, and NMSC. FCR was associated with increased risk for AML/MDS. Funding: AbbVie, and EU/ EFPIA Innovative Medicines Initiative Joint Undertaking HARMONY grant n° 116026