Feasibility and Implementation of a Multimodal Supportive Care Program to Improve Outcomes in Older Patients Undergoing Allogeneic Stem Cell Transplantation.

Increasingly, patients age ≥65 years are undergoing allogeneic hematopoietic stem cell transplantation (allo-SCT). Although age alone is a well-documented predictor of overall survival (OS) and nonrelapse mortality (NRM), growing evidence suggests that poor functional status and frailty associated with aging may have roles as well. Our goal in the present study was to identify and improve these and other aging-related maladies by developing a multimodal supportive care program for older allo-SCT recipients.

Leflunomide therapy for refractory cytomegalovirus infections in hematopoietic stem cell transplant recipients.

Background: Currently, there are no prospective, randomized trials analyzing leflunomide for the treatment of cytomegalovirus infection or disease in allogeneic stem cell transplant patients.

Objective: The primary objective of this case series was to determine the clinical and virological responses of utilizing leflunomide as therapy for refractory cytomegalovirus infections, unresponsive to first-line therapy in allogeneic stem cell transplant patients. Additionally, patient and leflunomide specific characteristics were identified and determined in this descriptive case series.

Prostate cancer survivorship: a nurse-led service model.

A significant proportion of men suffer side effects and are acknowledged to have unmet physical, functional and psychological needs after prostate cancer treatment. A nurse-led survivorship programme was implemented at Newcastle upon Tyne Hospitals NHS Foundation Trust for men with prostate cancer. This article describes implementation of the model and presents the results of an early evaluation to assess its impact.

The impact of pre-transplant valganciclovir on early cytomegalovirus reactivation after allogeneic hematopoietic stem cell transplantation.

Cytomegalovirus reactivation is a common complication of allogeneic hematopoietic stem cell transplant. The use of pre-transplant valganciclovir during the conditioning regimen followed by preemptive therapy has been used in an attempt to reduce the rate of early cytomegalovirus reactivation, but efficacy data are lacking. In this retrospective study, we evaluated the impact of pre-transplant valganciclovir during the conditioning regimen followed by a preemptive approach on the rate of early cytomegalovirus reactivation through day 100.