Objective: To assess in multiple sclerosis (MS) the effect of intense immunosuppression followed by autologous hematopoietic stem cells transplantation (AHSCT) vs mitoxantrone (MTX) on disease activity measured by MRI.
Methods: We conducted a multicenter, phase II, randomized trial including patients with secondary progressive or relapsing-remitting MS, with a documented increase in the last year on the Expanded Disability Status Scale, in spite of conventional therapy, and presence of one or more gadolinium-enhancing (Gd+) areas. Patients were randomized to receive intense immunosuppression (mobilization with cyclophosphamide and filgrastim, conditioning with carmustine, cytosine-arabinoside, etoposide, melphalan, and anti-thymocyte globulin) followed by AHSCT or MTX 20 mg every month for 6 months.
Reduced-intensity conditioning regimens have reshaped the clinical presentation of graft-versus-host disease after hematopoietic stem cell transplants. However, histopathologic features of graft-versus-host disease following reduced-intensity conditioning regimens have not been fully characterized. In a series of 112 biopsies (skin, n = 60; gastrointestinal [GI] tract, n = 44; liver, n = 8), we described the morphologic profile of graft-versus-host disease following reduced-intensity conditioning and investigated whether histopathologic changes of graft-versus-host disease following reduced-intensity conditioning have a diagnostic and/or prognostic value.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFHaematologica
January 2009
Eradication of Helicobacter pylori may lead to improvement of chronic immune thrombocytopenic purpura (ITP), although its efficacy over time is uncertain. We report the results of H pylori screening and eradication in 75 consecutive adult patients with ITP. We also used molecular methods to investigate lymphocyte clonality and H pylori genotypes in the gastric biopsies from 10 H pylori-positive patients with ITP and 19 H pylori-positive patients without ITP with chronic gastritis.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFIsolated extramedullary relapse (IEMR) is a pattern of acute myeloid leukemia (AML) relapse post-allogeneic bone marrow transplantation (alloBMT). Less is known about IEMR post-autologous BMT (autoBMT) and about factors associated with IEMR. We report a case of a woman with M4 AML who experienced IEMR post-autoBMT and review the related literature.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFHematopoietic stem cell transplantation (HSCT) has been proposed for the treatment of severe multiple sclerosis (MS). In a phase 2 multicenter study we selected 19 non-primary progressive MS patients showing high disease activity on the basis of both brain magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) and sustained clinical deterioration despite conventional treatments. After stem cell mobilization with cyclophosphamide (CY) and filgrastim, patients were conditioned with BCNU (1,3-bis(2-chloroethyl)-1-nitrosourea), cytosine arabinoside, etoposide, and melphalan (BEAM) followed by antithymocyte globulin (ATG).
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