Autologous Hematopoietic Stem Cell Transplantation vs Intravenous Pulse Cyclophosphamide in Diffuse Cutaneous Systemic Sclerosis: A Randomized Clinical Trial

Importance: High-dose immunosuppressive therapy and autologous hematopoietic stem cell transplantation (HSCT) have shown efficacy in systemic sclerosis in phase 1 and small phase 2 trials. Objective: To compare efficacy and safety of HSCT vs 12 successive monthly intravenous pulses of cyclophosphamide. Design, Setting, and Participants: The Autologous Stem Cell Transplantation International Scleroderma (ASTIS) trial, a phase 3, multicenter, randomized (1:1), open-label, parallel-group, clinical trial conducted in 10 countries at 29 centers with access to a European Group for Blood and Marrow Transplantation–registered transplant facility. From March 2001 to October 2009, 156 patients with early diffuse cutaneous systemic sclerosis were recruited and followed up until October 31, 2013. Interventions: HSCT vs intravenous pulse cyclophosphamide. Main Outcomes and Measures: The primary end point was event-free survival, defined as time from randomization until the occurrence of death or persistent major organ failure. Results: A total of 156 patients were randomly assigned to receive HSCT (n = 79) or cyclophosphamide (n = 77). During a median follow-up of 5.8 years, 53 events occurred: 22 in the HSCT group (19 deaths and 3 irreversible organ failures) and 31 in the control group (23 deaths and 8 irreversible organ failures). During the first year, there were more events in the HSCT group (13 events [16.5%], including 8 treatment-related deaths) than in the control group (8 events [10.4%], with no treatment-related deaths). At 2 years, 14 events (17.7%) had occurred cumulatively in the HSCT group vs 14 events (18.2%) in the control group; at 4 years, 15 events (19%) had occurred cumulatively in the HSCT group vs 20 events (26%) in the control group. Time-varying hazard ratios (modeled with treatment × time interaction) for event-free survival were 0.35 (95% CI, 0.16-0.74) at 2 years and 0.34 (95% CI, 0.16-0.74) at 4 years. Conclusions and Relevance: Among patients with early diffuse cutaneous systemic sclerosis, HSCT was associated with increased treatment-related mortality in the first year after treatment. However, HCST conferred a significant long-term event-free survival benefit. Trial Registration: isrctn.org Identifier: ISRCTN5437125

Soluble CD163 and Incident Cardiovascular Events in Patients with Systemic Lupus Erythematosus: An Observational Cohort Study.

International audienc

Allogeneic stem cell transplantation compared to conservative management in adults with inborn errors of immunity

Allogeneic hematopoietic stem cell transplantation (alloSCT) is curative for severe inborn errors of immunity (IEI), with recent data suggesting alloSCT in adulthood is safe and effective in selected patients. However, questions remain regarding the indications for and optimal timing of transplant. We retrospectively compared outcomes of transplanted with matched non-transplanted adults with severe IEI. Seventy-nine patients (aged ≥15 years) underwent alloSCT between 2008 and 2018 for IEI, including chronic granulomatous disease (CGD, n=20) and various combined immune deficiencies (CID, n=59). A cohort of non-transplanted patients from the French CEREDIH registry was identified blindly for case-control analysis after matching for birth decade, age at last review greater than age at alloSCT, CGD or CID, and autoimmune/lymphoproliferative complications; with ≤3 matched controls per index patient without replacement. 281 patients were included (79 transplanted, 202 non-transplanted). Median age at transplant was 21 years. Transplant indications were mainly lymphoproliferative disease (n=23) or colitis (n=15). Median follow-up was 4.8 years (IQR [2.5-7.2]). One-year TRM was 13%. Estimated DFS at 5 years was higher in transplanted patients (58% vs. 33%, p=0.007). Non-transplanted patients had an ongoing risk of severe events with an increased mean cumulative number of recurrent events compared to transplanted patients. Sensitivity analyses removing patients with CVID and their matched transplanted patients confirm these results. AlloSCT prevents progressive morbidity associated with IEI in adults, which may outweigh the negative impact of TRM

Clonal haematopoiesis of indeterminate potential and cardiovascular events in systemic lupus erythematosus (HEMATOPLUS study)

International audienceAbstract Objective The detection of somatic mutations among the genes of myeloid cells in asymptomatic patients—defining clonal haematopoiesis of indeterminate potential (CHIP)—is associated with a predisposition to cardiovascular events (CVEs) in the general population. We aimed to determine whether CHIP was associated with CVEs in SLE patients. Methods The study is an ancillary study of the randomized, double-blind, placebo-controlled, multicentre PLUS trial conducted from June 2007 through August 2010 at 37 centres in France, involving 573 SLE patients. The search for somatic mutations by high-throughput sequencing of 53 genes involved in clonal haematopoiesis was performed on genomic DNA collected at PLUS inclusion. CHIP prevalence was assessed in SLE and in a retrospective cohort of 479 patients free of haematological malignancy. The primary outcome was an incident CVE in SLE. Results Screening for CHIP was performed in 438 SLE patients [38 (29–47) years, 91.8% female]. Overall, 63 somatic mutations were identified in 47 patients, defining a CHIP prevalence of 10.7% in SLE. Most SLE patients (78.7%) carried a single mutation. Most variants (62.5%) were located in the DNMT3A gene. CHIP frequency was related to age and to age at SLE diagnosis, and was associated with a lower frequency of aPLs. CHIP occurred >20 years earlier (P < 0.00001) in SLE than in controls. The detection of CHIP at inclusion was not found to be associated with occurrence of CVEs during follow-up [HR = 0.42 (0.06–3.21), P = 0.406]. Conclusion The prevalence of CHIP is relatively high in SLE for a given age, but was not found to be associated with incident CVEs. Trial registration ClinicalTrials.gov, https://clinicaltrials.gov, NCT05146414

Study of anti-Müllerian hormone and its relation to the subsequent probability of pregnancy in 112 patients with systemic lupus erythematosus, exposed or not to cyclophosphamide.

International audienceCONTEXT: Cyclophosphamide is used for renal and major extrarenal involvement in systemic lupus erythematosus (SLE) and is associated with a risk of premature ovarian failure. There are no data available about the relation between anti-Müllerian hormone (AMH) serum levels and the probability of subsequent pregnancy in SLE patients. OBJECTIVE: We analyzed AMH levels and the probability of pregnancy in SLE women exposed to cyclophosphamide. DESIGN AND SETTING: We conducted a matched cohort study in referral centers for SLE. PATIENTS: Fifty-six cyclophosphamide-exposed SLE women younger than 40 years of age and 56 control SLE women matched for age within 6 months participated in the study. MAIN OUTCOME MEASURES: AMH was measured in samples from the PLUS study (ClinicalTrials.gov no. NCT00413361). All patients were interviewed in May 2012 regarding their obstetric status. RESULTS: The mean age ± SD of the 112 patients was 31.6 ± 5.8 years. The mean AMH level was low (1.21 ± 1.01 ng/mL) and was significantly lower in patients exposed to cyclophosphamide (P = .03) and in patients older than 30 years (P = .02). During a median follow-up (interval between sampling and the interview) period of 4.2 (range, 2.5-4.8) years, 38 patients sought to become pregnant, and 32 (84.2%) succeeded. In the univariate analysis, the risk of failure was associated with cumulative cyclophosphamide dose (P = .007) and older age (P = .02), but not with AMH. CONCLUSION: We confirmed that AMH levels are low in SLE patients and decrease significantly with age and cyclophosphamide exposure. Nonetheless, the risk of failure to conceive was low and was predicted by cyclophosphamide exposure and age, but not by AMH levels