Reduced Chimeric Antigen Receptor T Cell Expansion Postinfusion Is Associated with Poor Survival in Patients with Large B Cell Lymphoma after Two or More Therapies.

CD19-directed chimeric antigen receptor T cell (CAR-T) therapy is now standard of care for relapsed/refractory large B cell non-Hodgkin lymphoma. Despite good overall response rates, many patients still experience disease progression and therefore it is important to predict those at risk of relapse following CAR-T therapy. We performed a prospective study using a flow cytometry assay at a single treatment center to assess early CAR T cell expansion in vivo 6 to 9 days after CAR T cell infusion.

Myeloma skews regulatory T and pro-inflammatory T helper 17 cell balance in favor of a suppressive state.

Abstract Discrepancies in the literature between regulatory T cell (Treg) and pro-inflammatory T helper 17 (Th17) numbers in multiple myeloma (MM) can be largely explained by technical differences in methodology and patient selection. In this study, Treg cells were defined as CD3(+)CD4(+)CD25(++)CD127(lo) cells. Patients with MM (n = 20) had a significant imbalance in Treg/Th17 ratio when compared with either aged-matched controls (n = 28) or other monoclonal gammopathies, and this was associated with a significantly worse survival.

Clonal expansions of cytotoxic T cells exist in the blood of patients with Waldenstrom macroglobulinemia but exhibit anergic properties and are eliminated by nucleoside analogue therapy.

T cells contribute to host-tumor interactions in patients with monoclonal gammopathies. Expansions of CD8(+)CD57(+) T-cell receptor Vbeta-positive (TCRVbeta(+))-restricted cytotoxic T-cell (CTL) clones are found in 48% of patients with multiple myeloma and confer a favorable prognosis. We now report that CTL clones with varying TCRVbeta repertoire are present in 70% of patients with Waldenström macroglobulinemia (WM; n = 20).

Prognostically significant cytotoxic T cell clones are stimulated after thalidomide therapy in patients with multiple myeloma.

The expanded T cell clones are associated with a prolonged survival in patients with multiple myeloma. We sought to confirm this prognostic significance in a multicenter patient cohort and investigate the effect of thalidomide on clones and T regulatory cells (T(regs)). Blood was collected from 120 patients enrolled in a Phase III trial of maintenance therapy +/- thalidomide after autologous stem cell transplantation.

An evaluation of the DiaMed assays for immunoglobulin A antibodies (anti-IgA) and IgA deficiency.

Background: Immunoglobulin A antibodies (anti-IgA) are rare but can cause transfusion-associated anaphylaxis. The detection of anti-IgA has traditionally been performed using a labor-intensive hemagglutination assay in a limited number of reference laboratories.

Study Design And Methods: Two simple gel card assays are now available that can be used to screen for anti-IgA and IgA deficiency.