Publications by authors named "Alonzo T"

Acute Myeloid Leukemia (AML) is an aggressive cancer with dismal outcomes, vast subtype heterogeneity, and suboptimal risk stratification. In this study, we harmonized DNA methylation data from 3,314 patients across 11 cohorts to develop the Acute Leukemia Methylome Atlas (ALMA) of diagnostic relevance that predicted 27 WHO 2022 acute leukemia subtypes with an overall accuracy of 96.3% in discovery and 90.

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Article Synopsis
  • Several genomic subsets of mutations in acute myeloid leukemia (AML) patients were studied to understand their impact on outcomes and the underlying biology, revealing that type D mutations correlated with poorer survival rates compared to other types.
  • In a cohort of over 4,000 patients, a study found that those with type A, B, and rare variants had more favorable overall survival rates, while type D patients exhibited significantly worse outcomes.
  • The research highlighted that codon optimality in type D mutations affects gene expression and translation efficiency, leading to poorer prognostic implications and indicating the need for a potential reclassification of type D patients to higher-risk groups.
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Background/aims: For cancers with low incidence, low event rates, and a time-to-event endpoint, a randomized non-inferiority trial designed based on the logrank test can require a large sample size with significantly prolonged enrollment duration, making such a non-inferiority trial not feasible. This article evaluates a design based on a non-inferiority test of proportions, compares its required sample size to the non-inferiority logrank test, assesses whether there are scenarios for which a non-inferiority test of proportions can be more efficient, and provides guidelines in usage of a non-inferiority test of proportions.

Methods: This article describes the sample size calculation for a randomized non-inferiority trial based on a non-inferiority logrank test or a non-inferiority test of proportions.

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Purpose: The National Cancer Institute-Children's Oncology Group Pediatric Molecular Analysis for Therapy Choice trial assigned patients age 1-21 years with relapsed or refractory solid tumors, lymphomas, and histiocytic disorders to phase II treatment arms of molecularly targeted therapies on the basis of genetic alterations detected in their tumor. Patients with tumors that harbored prespecified genomic alterations in the cyclinD-CDK4/6-INK4a-Rb pathway with intact Rb expression were assigned and treated with the cdk4/6 inhibitor palbociclib.

Methods: Patients received palbociclib orally once daily for 21 days of 28-day cycles until disease progression, intolerable toxicity, or up to 2 years.

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Purpose: Patients age 1-21 years with relapsed or refractory solid and CNS tumors were assigned to phase II studies of molecularly targeted therapies on the National Cancer Institute-Children's Oncology Group (NCI-COG) Pediatric Molecular Analysis for Therapy Choice (MATCH) trial. Patients whose tumors harbored predefined genetic alterations in the phosphoinositide 3-kinase (PI3K)/mammalian target of rapamycin (mTOR) pathway and lacked mitogen-activated protein kinase pathway activating alterations were treated with the PI3K/mTOR inhibitor samotolisib.

Methods: Patients received samotolisib twice daily in 28-day cycles until disease progression or unacceptable toxicity.

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In this study, we leveraged machine-learning tools by evaluating expression of genes of pharmacological relevance to standard-AML chemotherapy (ara-C/daunorubicin/etoposide) in a discovery-cohort of pediatric AML patients (N = 163; NCT00136084 ) and defined a 5-gene-drug resistance score (ADE-RS5) that was predictive of outcome (high MRD1 positivity p = 0.013; lower EFS p < 0.0001 and OS p < 0.

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Background: We examined the association between late-stage diagnosis and individual- and community-level sociodemographic and socioeconomic characteristics among patients with pediatric Hodgkin lymphoma and rhabdomyosarcoma (RMS).

Methods: We obtained Children's Oncology Group data from 1999 to 2021 including summary stage [local (L), regional (R), and distant (D)], tumor subtype, demographics, and ZIP Code at diagnosis. We linked ZIP Codes to county-level redlining scores (C, D = greatest redlining), the Child Opportunity Index, and measures of segregation (racial dissimilarity indices).

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Although concerns have been raised regarding potential infection and morbidity in women undergoing ablation treatment for cervical precancer in low- and middle-income countries (LMIC), there is extremely limited data to substantiate this claim. This is a secondary analysis of a randomized non-inferiority trial (id: NCT03084081) that compares the efficacy and safety of three ablation treatments for biopsy-confirmed cervical intraepithelial neoplasia grade 2 or higher (CIN2+): CO2 gas-based cryotherapy, non-gas cryotherapy, and thermal ablation (TA). Here, we present findings regarding the incidence of sexually transmitted infections (STI) and vaginitis post-treatment.

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Introduction: Anthracyclines are effective in treating acute myeloid leukemia (AML) but limited by cardiotoxicity. CPX-351, a liposomal daunorubicin and cytarabine, may provide therapeutic benefit with less cardiotoxicity. Acute changes in left ventricular systolic function and cardiac biomarkers were evaluated after a cycle of CPX-351 in children with relapsed AML treated on the phase 1/2 Children's Oncology Group study, AAML1421.

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Purpose: The National Cancer Institute-Children's Oncology Group (NCI-COG) Pediatric MATCH trial assigns patients age 1-21 years with refractory malignancies to phase II treatment arms of molecularly targeted therapies on the basis of genetic alterations detected in their tumor. Patients with activating alterations in the mitogen-activated protein kinase pathway were treated with ulixertinib, an extracellular signal-regulated kinase (ERK)1/2 inhibitor.

Methods: As there were no previous pediatric data, ulixertinib was initially tested in a dose escalation cohort to establish the recommended phase II dose (RP2D) before proceeding to the phase II cohort.

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Background: This is a phase II subprotocol of the NCI-COG Pediatric MATCH study evaluating vemurafenib, a selective oral inhibitor of BRAF V600 mutated kinase, in patients with relapsed or refractory solid tumors harboring BRAF V600 mutations.

Methods: Patients received vemurafenib at 550 mg/m2 (maximum 960 mg/dose) orally twice daily for 28-day cycles until progression or intolerable toxicity. The primary aim was to determine the objective response rate and secondary objectives included estimating progression-free survival and assessing the tolerability of vemurafenib.

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Background: The National Cancer Institute-Children's Oncology Group Pediatric Molecular Analysis for Therapy Choice (MATCH) precision oncology platform trial enrolled children aged 1-21 years with treatment-refractory solid tumors and predefined actionable genetic alterations. Patients with tumors harboring alterations in DNA damage repair (DDR) genes were assigned to receive olaparib.

Methods: Tumor and blood samples were submitted for centralized molecular testing.

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Despite decades of research, acute myeloid leukemia (AML) remains a remarkably lethal malignancy. While pediatric AML (pAML) carries a more favorable prognosis than adult AML, the past 25 years of large clinical trials have produced few improvements in pAML survival. Nowhere is this more evident than in patients carrying a t(16;21)(p11;q22) translocation, which yields the fusion transcript.

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The addition of the proteasome inhibitor bortezomib to standard chemotherapy did not improve survival in pediatric acute myeloid leukemia (AML) when all patients were analyzed as a group in the Children's Oncology Group phase 3 trial AAML1031 (NCT01371981). Proteasome inhibition influences the chromatin landscape and proteostasis, and we hypothesized that baseline proteomic analysis of histone- and chromatin-modifying enzymes (HMEs) would identify AML subgroups that benefitted from bortezomib addition. A proteomic profile of 483 patients treated with AAML1031 chemotherapy was generated using a reverse-phase protein array.

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Article Synopsis
  • * Three new recurring KMT2A-rearranged groups were identified, and a significant variation in 5-year event-free survival rates was observed across 13 different groups, highlighting the impact of genetic factors on patient outcomes.
  • * The research suggests incorporating five specific adverse-risk KMT2A fusions into current risk stratification models and calls for further studies to confirm the associations
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Article Synopsis
  • Myeloid neoplasms are a significant cause of pediatric leukaemias in infants, with 25%-50% of newborn leukemia cases showing skin-related symptoms before bone marrow involvement.
  • This study examines 50 infants diagnosed with either cutaneous extramedullary disease (cEMD) or acute myeloid leukemia with cutaneous involvement (AML-cEMD), finding a common genetic mutation (KMT2A rearrangement) and notable survival rates.
  • Results indicate a 66% event-free survival and a 75% overall survival rate, with some patients experiencing spontaneous remission; outcomes did not significantly differ between cEMD and AML-cEMD groups.
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MLLT10 gene rearrangements with KMT2A occur in pediatric acute myeloid leukemia (AML) and confer poor prognosis, but the prognostic impact of MLLT10 in partnership with other genes is unknown. We conducted a retrospective study with 2080 children and young adults with AML registered on the Children's Oncology Group AAML0531 (NCT00372593) and AAML1031 trials (NCT01371981). Transcriptome profiling and/or karyotyping were performed to identify leukemia-associated fusions associated with prognosis.

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As curative therapies for pediatric acute myleoid leukemia (AML) remain elusive, identifying potential new treatment targets is vital. We assessed the cell surface expression of CD74, also known as the major histocompatibility complex-II invariant chain, by multidimensional flow cytometry in 973 patients enrolled in the Children's Oncology Group AAML1031 clinical trial (clinicaltrials gov. Identifier: NCT01371981).

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We sought to define the cooccurring mutational profile of FLT3-ITD-positive (ITDpos) acute myeloid leukemia (AML) in pediatric and young adult patients and to define the prognostic impact of cooperating mutations. We identified 464 patients with FLT3-ITD mutations treated on Children's Oncology Group trials with available sequencing and outcome data. Overall survival, event-free survival (EFS), and relapse risk were determined according to the presence of cooccurring risk stratifying mutations.

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We develop a Bayesian semiparametric model for the impact of dynamic treatment rules on survival among patients diagnosed with pediatric acute myeloid leukemia (AML). The data consist of a subset of patients enrolled in a phase III clinical trial in which patients move through a sequence of four treatment courses. At each course, they undergo treatment that may or may not include anthracyclines (ACT).

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Recent studies on pediatric acute myeloid leukemia (pAML) have revealed pediatric-specific driver alterations, many of which are underrepresented in the current classification schemas. To comprehensively define the genomic landscape of pAML, we systematically categorized 887 pAML into 23 mutually distinct molecular categories, including new major entities such as UBTF or BCL11B, covering 91.4% of the cohort.

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Article Synopsis
  • - The study aimed to explore pharmacogenomics related to the calicheamicin pathway to find predictive markers for how patients with acute myeloid leukemia (AML) respond to gemtuzumab ozogamicin (GO) treatment.
  • - Researchers analyzed genetic variations, specifically single nucleotide polymorphisms (SNPs), in genes involved in DNA-damage response, and discovered that a specific score (DDR_PGx7) could predict patient outcomes, showing significant differences in event-free survival and overall survival for patients receiving GO.
  • - The findings suggest that the DDR_PGx7 score could help customize GO treatment for AML patients, but further research is needed to confirm these results in larger and different patient groups.
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Article Synopsis
  • * Researchers analyzed 1,357 patients diagnosed with cancer in Kentucky from 2012-2017, discovering that 47% of them were enrolled in a Children's Oncology Group study, with younger patients having higher enrollment odds.
  • * The findings suggest that this linkage method is effective for tracking enrollment patterns, highlighting disparities where adolescents had lower enrollment rates than younger children, indicating potential areas for intervention to boost participation in clinical trials.
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Background: Pediatric acute myeloid leukemia (AML) therapy is associated with substantial short- and long-term treatment-related cardiotoxicity mainly due to high-dose anthracycline exposure. Early left ventricular systolic dysfunction (LVSD) compromises anthracycline delivery and is associated with inferior event-free and overall survival in pediatric AML. Thus, effective cardioprotective strategies and cardiotoxicity risk predictors are critical to optimize cancer therapy delivery and enable early interventions to prevent progressive LVSD.

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Background: Pediatric acute myeloid leukemia (AML) chemotherapy increases the risk of life-threatening complications, including septic shock (SS). An area-based measure of social determinants of health, the social disorganization index (SDI), was hypothesized to be associated with SS and SS-associated death (SS-death).

Methods: Children treated for de novo AML on two Children's Oncology Group trials at institutions contributing to the Pediatric Health Information System (PHIS) database were included.

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