Fludarabine, cytarabine, granulocyte colony-stimulating factor, and idarubicin with gemtuzumab ozogamicin improves event-free survival in younger patients with newly diagnosed aml and overall survival in patients with npm1 and flt3 mutations

Purpose To determine the optimal induction chemotherapy regimen for younger adults with newly diagnosed AML without known adverse risk cytogenetics. Patients and Methods One thousand thirty-three patients were randomly assigned to intensified (fludarabine, cytarabine, granulocyte colony-stimulating factor, and idarubicin [FLAG-Ida]) or standard (daunorubicin and Ara-C [DA]) induction chemotherapy, with one or two doses of gemtuzumab ozogamicin (GO). The primary end point was overall survival (OS). Results There was no difference in remission rate after two courses between FLAG-Ida + GO and DA + GO (complete remission [CR] + CR with incomplete hematologic recovery 93% v 91%) or in day 60 mortality (4.3% v 4.6%). There was no difference in OS (66% v 63%; P = .41); however, the risk of relapse was lower with FLAG-Ida + GO (24% v 41%; P < .001) and 3-year event-free survival was higher (57% v 45%; P < .001). In patients with an NPM1 mutation (30%), 3-year OS was significantly higher with FLAG-Ida + GO (82% v 64%; P = .005). NPM1 measurable residual disease (MRD) clearance was also greater, with 88% versus 77% becoming MRD-negative in peripheral blood after cycle 2 (P = .02). Three-year OS was also higher in patients with a FLT3 mutation (64% v 54%; P = .047). Fewer transplants were performed in patients receiving FLAG-Ida + GO (238 v 278; P = .02). There was no difference in outcome according to the number of GO doses, although NPM1 MRD clearance was higher with two doses in the DA arm. Patients with core binding factor AML treated with DA and one dose of GO had a 3-year OS of 96% with no survival benefit from FLAG-Ida + GO. Conclusion Overall, FLAG-Ida + GO significantly reduced relapse without improving OS. However, exploratory analyses show that patients with NPM1 and FLT3 mutations had substantial improvements in OS. By contrast, in patients with core binding factor AML, outcomes were excellent with DA + GO with no FLAG-Ida benefit

Cost Comparison of Antibacterial Therapies for Serious Infections: A New Zealand 3-Hospital Study

Objective: The first aim was to identify and determine the economic costs of the regimens currently used in 3 New Zealand hospitals in the treatment of bacterial infections in haematology patients with febrile neutropenia and in intensive care patients with severe infections. The second was to develop a spreadsheet-based decision analytic model for use by hospital decision-makers as an aid in evaluating the comparative cost of drug regimens. Design and setting: The research utilised time and motion and microcosting techniques. The analytical perspective adopted for the study was that of a hospital administrator or clinical manager. Patients and interventions: Patients were eligible for inclusion in the study if either they were treated with the imipenem/cilastatin monotherapy, or could have been treated with this regimen. The final analysis considered 360 patient-treatment days and 8 antibacterials. Main outcome measures and results: Drug acquisition cost ranged from 4.52 New Zealand dollars ($NZ; 1997 values) per patient-treatment day for gentamicin to$NZ104.81 for imipenem. The cost per patient-treatment day (when other cost components such as fluid additives, giving sets and needles were added) ranged from $NZ8.75 for gentamicin to$NZ129.12 for tazobactam. Drug acquisition cost, as a percentage of total drug preparation and administration cost, ranged from 52% for gentamicin to 93% for piperacillin. Giving sets and intravenous (IV) fluids were found to be important cost items when they were required specifically for the treatment regimen. There was a mean monitoring rate of 0.40 at a cost of $NZ6.41 per patient-treatment day for gentamicin. It was estimated that nephrotoxicity could add between$NZ23 and $NZ43 per day to the cost of aminoglycoside treatment. Conclusions: Although the small sample sizes of the study mean that results should be regarded as indicative rather than conclusive, there were sufficient information to construct a working model and show how the total cost of an antibacterial regimen could be evaluated in practical terms. The important cost drivers were found to be drug cost, the use of fluids and giving sets, and monitoring.Pharmacoeconomics, Hospitalisation, Antibacterials, Bacterial-infections, Cost-analysis, Resource-use

Defining the Optimal Total Number of Chemotherapy Courses in Younger Patients With Acute Myeloid Leukemia: A Comparison of Three Versus Four Courses.

PURPOSE: The optimum number of treatment courses for younger patients with acute myeloid leukemia (AML) is uncertain. The United Kingdom National Cancer Research Institute AML17 trial randomly assigned patients who were not high risk to a total of three versus four courses. PATIENTS AND METHODS: Patients received two induction courses based on daunorubicin and cytarabine (Ara-C), usually with gemtuzumab ozogamicin. Following remission, 1,017 patients were randomly assigned to a third course, MACE (amsacrine, Ara-C, and etoposide), plus a fourth course of MidAc (mitoxantrone and Ara-C) and following an amendment to one or two courses of high-dose Ara-C. Primary end points were cumulative incidence of relapse (CIR), relapse-free survival (RFS), and overall survival (OS). Outcomes were correlated with patient characteristics, mutations, cytogenetics, induction treatments, and measurable residual disease (MRD) postinduction. RESULTS: In logrank analyses, CIR and RFS at 5 years were improved in recipients of four courses (50% v 58%: hazard ratio [HR] 0.81 [0.69-0.97], P = .02 and 43% v 36%: HR 0.83 [0.71-0.98], P = .03, respectively). While OS was not significantly better (63% v 57%: HR 0.84 [0.69-1.03], P = .09), the noninferiority of three courses to four courses was not established. The impact on relapse was only significant when the fourth course was Ara-C. In exploratory analyses, although MRD impacted survival, a fourth course had no effect in either MRD-positive or MRD-negative patients. A fourth course was beneficial in patients who lacked a mutation of FLT3 or NPM1, had < 3 mutations in other genes, or had a presenting WBC of < 10 × 109 L-1. CONCLUSION: Although a fourth course of high-dose Ara-C reduced CIR and improved RFS, it did not result in a significant OS benefit. Subsets including those with favorable cytogenetics, those lacking a mutation of FLT3 or NPM1, or those with < 3 other mutations may derive survival benefit

Whimsical (Waldenstrom's Macroglobulinemia Study Involving CArt-wheeL): A Global Patient-Derived Data Registry Capturing Treatment, Quality of Life and COVID-19 Data

Introduction: Patient-derived data can increase breadth of knowledge in rare cancers like Waldenström's Macroglobulinemia (WM), including patient-reported outcomes (PROs). WhiMSICAL (Waldenström's Macroglobulinemia Study Involving CArt-wheeL) is the only global registry capturing patient-derived data for hypothesis generation in WM. Rapidly adaptable, it has been amended to capture Coronavirus Disease 2019 (COVID-19) data. Methods: An ethically-approved WM-specific extension to www.cart-wheel.org, an online rare cancer database for patient-derived data, was developed by clinician and patient investigators. Participants complete consent, and enter symptom, pathology, treatment and PRO (EORTC-QLQ-C30, Impact of Event Scale-6) data online. Recruitment strategies utilizing social media tools are driven by the International Waldenström's Macroglobulinemia Foundation investigators. A validation study compared patient-entered data with data-manager-entered data in the Australia & New Zealand Lymphoma & Related Diseases Registry (LaRDR). To capture the impact of COVID-19, additional questions on COVID-19 testing, symptoms and therapy, as well as effect on WM management in those without COVID-19, were included in April 2020. Results: 453 patients from 19 countries have been recruited, predominantly from USA (46%) and Australia (25%), with male predominance (62%). At diagnosis, median age was 61 (range 24-83), median IgM 2620 mg/dL (IQR 1320-3850 mg/dL, n=175) and median hemoglobin 11.4 g/dL (IQR 9.5-12.9 g/dL, n=181). Of the 365 (81%) patients providing symptoms at diagnosis, fatigue/muscle weakness was most common (46%) and 30% were asymptomatic. Using the Impact of Event Scale for symptoms of post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD) resulting from a cancer diagnosis, the mean score among 387 patients was 5.9 (no stress=0, maximal stress=24), with 39/387 (10%) scoring >13 (PPV 94% for PTSD, Thoresen et al, 2010). This proportion did not increase for scores entered after March 1st, 2020 - 12/123 (10%) - when the COVID-19 pandemic became a global crisis. Marked treatment variation was noted, with 47 different first-line therapeutic combinations documented by 302 patients. Median time from diagnosis to first treatment for USA patients was 48 days (IQR 13-404, n=133) vs Rest of World (ROW) 176 days (IQR 20-885, n=163), (p=0.01). At median follow up of 38.5 months, first-line bendamustine rituximab had superior time to next treatment outcomes compared to other first-line therapies: rituximab monotherapy, dexamethasone-rituximab-cyclophosphamide and Bruton tyrosine kinase inhibitors (BTKi, Figure 1). 51 patients exposed to BTKi had a trend to higher EORTC QLQ-C30 global scales, mean 78.6±17.7, compared to 148 not exposed: mean 73.4±22.6 (p=0.13), despite higher treatment burden: median lines of treatment 2 (IQR 1-4) and 1 (IQR 1-2), respectively (p83%. 188/453 (42%) participants responded to the impact of COVID-19 questions; 75/188 (40%) had reduced face-to-face reviews, 4/188 (2%) had delays to starting treatment and 57/188 (30%) documented no impact. Of the 188 respondents, 23 (12%) had COVID-19 testing, with two returning a positive result and neither requiring hospitalization. Conclusion: WhiMSICAL is a robust, rapidly adaptable, global patient-derived data platform, providing insight into patient symptoms, real-world therapies and PROs. It is a scientific, ethically-approved portal for contributing the patients' voice in this rare lymphoma