Safety and efficacy of INCB018424, a JAK1 and JAK2 inhibitor, in myelofibrosis.

Background: Myelofibrosis is a Philadelphia chromosome–negative myeloproliferative neoplasm associated with cytopenias, splenomegaly, poor quality of life, and shortened survival. About half of patients with myelofibrosis carry a gain-of-function mutation in the Janus kinase 2 gene (JAK2 V617F) that contributes to the pathophysiology of the disease. INCB018424 is a potent and selective Janus kinase 1 (JAK1) and JAK2 inhibitor.

Sibling versus unrelated donor allogeneic hematopoietic cell transplantation for chronic myelogenous leukemia: refined HLA matching reveals more graft-versus-host disease but not less relapse.

Unrelated donor (URD) hematopoietic cell transplantation (HCT) can eradicate chronic myelogenous leukemia (CML). It has been postulated that greater donor-recipient histoincompatibility can augment the graft-versus-leukemia (GVL) effect. We previously reported similar, but not equivalent, outcomes of URD versus sibling donor HCT for CML using an older, less precise classification of HLA matching.

Obesity, weight gain, and risk of chronic myeloid leukemia.

To date, little is known about the risk factors for the development of chronic myeloid leukemia (CML). Obesity, measured as body mass index, has been identified as a possible risk factor for several solid tumors as well as some adult hematopoietic malignancies. This case-control study (N = 253 cases and 270 controls), conducted at the University of Texas M.

Comparative efficacy and safety of gemtuzumab ozogamicin monotherapy and high-dose cytarabine combination therapy in patients with acute myeloid leukemia in first relapse.

Gemtuzumab ozogamicin was recently approved in the United States for the treatment of older patients with CD33-positive acute myeloid leukemia (AML) in first relapse. However, the lack of randomized clinical trials makes it so difficult to determine which patients are best suited for this compared with other treatment regimens. Results for 128 patients given gemtuzumab ozogamicin in phase II trials were compared with those for 128 patients given high-dose cytarabine (HDAC) combination therapy in different trials Multivariate logistic regression was used to analyze age, duration of first complete remission (CR1), and cytogenetics for potential differences between the groups.

The role of craniospinal irradiation in adults with a central nervous system recurrence of leukemia.

Background: Although central nervous system (CNS) prophylaxis in patients with leukemia has reduced the incidence of CNS disease recurrence, it still is reported to occur in approximately 5-10% of cases, resulting in a median survival of 6 months. Craniospinal irradiation (CSI) has been shown to improve survival in children who develop a CNS recurrence of acute lymphocytic leukemia (ALL). However, to the authors' knowledge, the role of CSI in adults with a CNS recurrence of leukemia is unknown.

Phase I study of oral topotecan in hematological malignancies.

Purpose: In this Phase I, dose-seeking study, we investigated the dose-limiting toxicities (DLTs) and maximal tolerated dose (MTD) of oral topotecan in patients with hematological malignancies.

Experimental Design: Patients with myelodysplastic syndromes, myeloproliferative disorders, or relapsed acute myelogenous leukemia were treated with 0.6-1.

The proteasome inhibitor PS-341 inhibits growth and induces apoptosis in Bcr/Abl-positive cell lines sensitive and resistant to imatinib mesylate.

Background And Objectives: Imatinib mesylate (IM) is the choice treatment for Bcr/Abl-positive malignancies. Emergence of resistance to IM warrants the exploration of novel well-tolerated anticancer agents. We intended to evaluate the effect of PS-341 on proliferation, survival, and cellular events in Bcr/Abl-positive cells sensitive and resistant to IM, and to investigate the effect of PS-341 and IM in conjunction.

Hairy cell leukemia is infrequent in México and has a geographic distribution.

Considering that the prevalence of some hematologic malignancies may have a geographic distribution that could be related with its etiology, a group of 2,387 patients with acute leukemia (1,968 adults and 419 children) was studied along a 5-year period in six different locations within México. Twenty-seven patients (16 males and 11 females) with hairy cell leukemia (HCL) were identified. The adjusted overall proportion of HCL, after excluding data from centers reporting only adults, was 1.

Neurotoxicity associated with fludarabine and cytosine arabinoside chemotherapy for acute leukemia and myelodysplasia.

Neurological toxicity occurred in 8/219 patients treated with fludarabine (FAMP), 30 mg/m2 per day and cytosine arabinoside (Ara-C), 0.5 g/m2 per hour for 2-6 hours for 5 days, for new or relapsed acute leukemia or myelodysplasia. Two patients developed severe, progressive cerebral dysfunction that was ultimately fatal.

[The transfer of critically ill patients].

Critically ill patients admitted to an intensive care unit or an emergency ward, frequently need to be transported to different areas within the hospital in order to perform diagnostic procedures. An increased mortality and morbidity risk has been found associated with the transportation of these patients. In order to investigate the effect of the intra-hospitalary transport of our patients on their clinical status this study was conducted.