Publications by authors named "Bjorn Gjertsen"

Resazurin, a phenoxazine used in cell viability assays, acts in vitro as an anti-leukaemic compound through the production of cellular reactive oxygen species (ROS) resulting in mitochondrial dysfunction and cell death. However, the in vivo tolerance and efficacy of resazurin in cancer are unknown. In this study, we investigated the in vitro and in vivo effects of resazurin in acute myeloid leukaemia (AML).

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Measurable residual disease (MRD) is detected in approximately a quarter of AML chemotherapy responders, serving as a predictor for relapse and shorter survival. Immunological control of residual disease is suggested to prevent relapse, but the mechanisms involved are not fully understood. We present a peripheral blood single cell immune profiling by mass cytometry using a 42-antibody panel with particular emphasis on markers of cellular immune response.

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Mass cytometry by time-of-flight (CyTOF) is an emerging technology allowing for in-depth characterization of cellular heterogeneity in cancer and other diseases. Unfortunately, high-dimensional analyses of CyTOF data remain quite demanding. Here, we deploy a bioinformatics framework that tackles two fundamental problems in CyTOF analyses namely (1) automated annotation of cell populations guided by a reference dataset and (2) systematic utilization of single-cell data for effective patient stratification.

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Acute myeloid leukemia (AML) is characterized by the accumulation of immature myeloid cells in the bone marrow and the peripheral blood. Nearly half of the AML patients relapse after standard induction therapy, and new forms of therapy are urgently needed. Chimeric antigen receptor (CAR) T therapy has so far not been successful in AML due to lack of efficacy and safety.

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Article Synopsis
  • * The DAstop2 study examined patients who previously failed a treatment-free remission (TFR) attempt, re-treating them with dasatinib for two years and assessing their ability to stop TKIs again.
  • * Results showed that 61%, 56%, and 46% of patients maintained TFR at 6, 12, and 24 months after attempting a second stop, demonstrating that this approach is safe and effective for many patients.
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Background: Right-sided colon cancer (RCC) differs in mutation profile and risk of recurrence compared to distal colon cancer. Circulating tumour DNA (ctDNA) present after surgery can identify patients with residual disease after curative surgery and predict risk of early recurrence.

Methods: This is a prospective observational biomarker trial with exploration of ctDNA in 50 non-metastatic RCC patients for which oncological right-sided colectomy was performed.

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Monosomy 7 and del(7q) (-7/-7q) are frequent chromosomal abnormalities detected in up to 10% of patients with acute myeloid leukemia (AML). Despite unfavorable treatment outcomes, no approved targeted therapies exist for patients with -7/-7q. Therefore, we aimed to identify novel vulnerabilities.

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In the phase 4 BYOND trial, patients with pretreated chronic myeloid leukemia (CML) received bosutinib (starting dose: 500 mg/day). Efficacy and safety after ≥3 years of follow-up in 156 patients with Philadelphia chromosome-positive chronic phase CML by age and Charlson Comorbidity Index scores (without the age component; mCCI) is reported. Cumulative major molecular response rates at any time on treatment were 73.

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Intensive induction chemotherapy achieves complete remissions (CR) in >60% of patients with acute myeloid leukemia (AML) but overall survival (OS) is poor for relapsing patients not eligible for allogeneic hematopoietic stem cell transplantation (allo-HSCT). Oral azacytidine may be used as maintenance treatment in AML in first remission, but can be associated with substantial side effects, and less toxic strategies should be explored. Twenty AML patients in first CR (CR1) ineligible for allo-HSCT were treated with FDC101, an autologous RNA-loaded mature dendritic cell (mDC) vaccine expressing two leukemia-associated antigens (LAAs).

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Article Synopsis
  • Li-Fraumeni syndrome (LFS) is a genetic condition that significantly increases the risk of developing various cancers, including B-cell lymphoblastic leukemia (B-ALL) in adults.
  • The case report discusses a pregnant woman with LFS who was diagnosed with B-ALL after previously being treated for early-onset breast cancer, highlighting challenges in standard treatment and the potential of immunotherapy.
  • The authors emphasize the importance of collaboration among healthcare professionals and suggest that immunotherapy can be a viable option for patients with LFS and B-ALL, even when initial treatments are not successful.
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In order to improve molecular response for a discontinuation attempt in chronic myeloid leukemia (CML) patients in chronic phase, who had not achieved at least a molecular response <0.01% BCR-ABL1 (MR) after at least 2 years of imatinib therapy, we prospectively evaluated whether they could attain MR after a switch to a combination of nilotinib and 9 months of pegylated interferon-α2b (PegIFN). The primary endpoint of confirmed MR at month 12 (a BCR-ABL1 level ≤ 0.

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Metastatic castration-resistant prostate cancer (mCRPC) is an immunologically cold disease with dismal outcomes. Cryoablation destroys cancer tissue, releases tumor-associated antigens and creates a pro-inflammatory microenvironment, while dendritic cells (DCs) activate immune responses through processing of antigens. Immunotherapy combinations could enhance the anti-tumor efficacy.

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