Romiplostim safety and efficacy for immune thrombocytopenia in clinical practice: 2-year results of 72 adults in a romiplostim compassionate-use program.

Romiplostim, a thrombopoietic agent with demonstrated efficacy against immune thrombocytopenia (ITP) in prospective controlled studies, was recently licensed for adults with chronic ITP. Only France has allowed romiplostim compassionate use since January 2008. ITP patients could receive romiplostim when they failed to respond to successive corticosteroids, intravenous immunoglobulins, rituximab, and splenectomy, or when splenectomy was not indicated.

HTLV-1 evades type I interferon antiviral signaling by inducing the suppressor of cytokine signaling 1 (SOCS1).

Human T cell leukemia virus type 1 (HTLV-1) is the etiologic agent of Adult T cell Leukemia (ATL) and the neurological disorder HTLV-1-associated myelopathy/tropical spastic paraparesis (HAM/TSP). Although the majority of HTLV-1-infected individuals remain asymptomatic carriers (AC) during their lifetime, 2-5% will develop either ATL or HAM/TSP, but never both. To better understand the gene expression changes in HTLV-1-associated diseases, we examined the mRNA profiles of CD4+ T cells isolated from 7 ATL, 12 HAM/TSP, 11 AC and 8 non-infected controls.

Meta-analysis on the use of zidovudine and interferon-alfa in adult T-cell leukemia/lymphoma showing improved survival in the leukemic subtypes.

Purpose: Human T-cell lymphotropic virus type-I-associated adult T-cell leukemia/lymphoma (ATL) is an aggressive, chemotherapy-resistant malignancy. Multiple small studies using zidovudine (AZT) and interferon-alfa (IFN-α) have shown response in patients with ATL. However, the impact of this innovative antiviral treatment strategy on long-term survival remains undetermined.

[Sensory ataxic neuromyelopathy in acquired copper deficiency].

Introduction: Neurological involvement associated with copper deficiency has been reported recently in humans and may be under-recognized.

Case Report: A 65-year-old patient, with past history of gastrectomy 40 years earlier, developed a myelodysplastic syndrome and then subacute onset of progressive gait ataxia and paresthesias in the lower extremities. Serum vitamin B12 level was low but neurological deterioration persisted, despite vitamin replacement therapy and normal cobalamin level.

Analysis of the ten-eleven translocation 2 (TET2) gene in familial myeloproliferative neoplasms.

The JAK2(V617F) mutation does not elucidate the phenotypic variability observed in myeloproliferative neoplasm (MPN) families. A putative tumor suppressor gene, TET2, was recently implicated in MPN and myelodysplastic syndromes through the identification of acquired mutations affecting hematopoietic stem cells. The present study analyzed the TET2 gene in 61 MPN cases from 42 families.