SARS-CoV-2-Specific T Lymphocytes Analysis in mRNA-Vaccinated Patients with B-Cell Lymphoid Malignancies on Active Treatment.

Background: Patients with B-lymphocyte malignancies (BCMs) receiving B-lymphocyte-targeted therapies have increased risk of severe COVID-19 outcomes and impaired antibody response to SARS-CoV-2 mRNA vaccination in comparison to non-hematologic oncologic patients or general population. Consequently, it is vital to explore vaccine-induced T-lymphocyte responses in patients referred for the understanding of immune protection against SARS-CoV2 infections. The objective of the present study was to analyze the recall immune responses carried out by T lymphocytes after two COVID-19 mRNA vaccine doses.

Impact of early palliative care intervention in autologous bone marrow transplantation: feasibility of a multicentric study.

Introduction: This prospective multicentre study evaluates the impact of Palliative Care Unit (PCU) intervention (Experimental Group, EG), during autologous hematopoietic stem cell transplantation (AHSCT) on quality of life (QoL), symptom control and healthcare resource use compared to standard practice (Control Group, CG). We used validated scales on Days 0 (stem cell infusion), + 7 (bone marrow aplasia, acute symptoms) and + 21 (aplasia recovery).

Results: In 40 patients (20 EG/ 20 CG: 45%/25% female, median age 57.

Outcomes after intensive chemotherapy for secondary and myeloid-related changes acute myeloid leukemia patients aged 60 to 75 years old: a retrospective analysis from the PETHEMA registry.

Treatment options for patients with secondary acute myeloid leukemia (sAML) and AML with myeloid-related changes (AMLMRC) aged 60 to 75 years are scarce and unsuitable. A pivotal trial showed that CPX-351 improved complete remission with/without incomplete recovery (CR/CRi) and overall survival (OS) as compared with standard "3+7" regimens. We retrospectively analyze outcomes of 765 patients with sAML and AML-MRC aged 60 to 75 years treated with intensive chemotherapy, reported to the PETHEMA registry before CPX-351 became available.

COVID-19 Severity and Survival over Time in Patients with Hematologic Malignancies: A Population-Based Registry Study.

Mortality rates for COVID-19 have declined over time in the general population, but data in patients with hematologic malignancies are contradictory. We identified independent prognostic factors for COVID-19 severity and survival in unvaccinated patients with hematologic malignancies, compared mortality rates over time and versus non-cancer inpatients, and investigated post COVID-19 condition. Data were analyzed from 1166 consecutive, eligible patients with hematologic malignancies from the population-based HEMATO-MADRID registry, Spain, with COVID-19 prior to vaccination roll-out, stratified into early (February-June 2020; = 769 (66%)) and later (July 2020-February 2021; = 397 (34%)) cohorts.

Severe infections in patients with lymphoproliferative diseases treated with new targeted drugs: A multicentric real-world study.

Background: Lymphoid neoplasms treatment has recently been renewed to increase antitumor efficacy and conventional chemotherapies toxicities. Limited data have been published about the infection risk associated with these new drugs, therefore this study analyzes the infectious complications in patients with lymphoproliferative diseases (LPD) treated with monoclonal antibodies (obinutuzumab, ofatumumab, brentuximab, nivolumab, or pembrolizumab), BTK inhibitors (ibrutinib and acalabrutinib), PI3K inhibitors (idelalisib) and BCL2 inhibitors (venetoclax).

Methods: Multicenter retrospective study of 458 LPD patients treated with targeted therapies in real-life setting, in 18 Spanish institutions, from the time of their commercial availability to August 2020.

Risk Factors and Mortality of COVID-19 in Patients With Lymphoma: A Multicenter Study.

Patients with cancer are poorly represented in coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) series, and heterogeneous series concerning hematology patients have been published. This study aimed to analyze the impact of COVID-19 in patients with lymphoma. We present a multicenter retrospective study from 19 centers in Madrid, Spain, evaluating risk factors for mortality in adult patients with COVID-19 and lymphoma.

Jumping Translocation in a Patient with Acute Leukemia and Fatal Evolution.

Jumping translocations are uncommon cytogenetic abnormalities in which a segment of a donor chromosome, often 1q, is transferred to two or more receptor chromosomes. We describe the case of a 64-year-old man with a history of acute myeloid leukemia associated with myelodysplastic syndrome, who presented with a relapse of the leukemia and, concomitantly, with the appearance of a jumping translocation involving chromosome 1q. The patient had a poor clinical course without the possibility of performing targeted treatment, and he died 5 months after relapse.

Impact of hematologic malignancy and type of cancer therapy on COVID-19 severity and mortality: lessons from a large population-based registry study.

Background: Patients with cancer have been shown to have a higher risk of clinical severity and mortality compared to non-cancer patients with COVID-19. Patients with hematologic malignancies typically are known to have higher levels of immunosuppression and may develop more severe respiratory viral infections than patients with solid tumors. Data on COVID-19 in patients with hematologic malignancies are limited.

High prognostic value of measurable residual disease detection by flow cytometry in chronic lymphocytic leukemia patients treated with front-line fludarabine, cyclophosphamide, and rituximab, followed by three years of rituximab maintenance.

It has been postulated that monitoring measurable residual disease (MRD) could be used as a surrogate marker of progression-free survival (PFS) in chronic lymphocytic leukemia (CLL) patients after treatment with immunochemotherapy regimens. In this study, we analyzed the outcome of 84 patients at 3 years of follow-up after first-line treatment with fludarabine, cyclophosphamide and rituximab (FCR) induction followed by 36 months of rituximab maintenance thearpy. MRD was assessed by a quantitative four-color flow cytometry panel with a sensitivity level of 10 Eighty out of 84 evaluable patients (95.

Minimal residual disease evaluation by flow cytometry is a complementary tool to cytogenetics for treatment decisions in acute myeloid leukaemia.

The clinical utility of minimal residual disease (MRD) analysis in acute myeloid leukaemia (AML) is not yet defined. We analysed the prognostic impact of MRD level at complete remision after induction therapy using multiparameter flow cytometry in 306 non-APL AML patients. First, we validated the prognostic value of MRD-thresholds we have previously proposed (≥ 0.

A team-based multidisciplinary approach to managing peripherally inserted central catheter complications in high-risk haematological patients: a prospective study.

Purpose: Use of peripherally inserted central catheters (PICCs) has markedly increased during the last decade. However, there are few studies on use of PICCs in patients with haematological malignancies (HM) receiving intensive chemotherapy. Preliminary data suggest a higher rate of PICC-related complications in these high-risk patients.

Two-weekly dose-adjusted (DA)-EPOCH-like chemotherapy with high-dose dexamethasone plus rituximab (DA-EDOCH14-R) in poor-prognostic untreated diffuse large B-cell lymphoma.

The activity and safety of two-weekly dose-adjusted (DA)-EPOCH (etoposide, prednisone, vincristine, cyclophosphamide, doxorubicin)-like chemotherapy with high-dose dexamethasone plus rituximab (DA-EDOCH14-R) was explored in 20 patients with previously untreated poor prognosis diffuse large B-cell lymphoma (DLBCL). The main outcomes were compared with those of 27 poor-prognosis patients enrolled into a previous trial of 3-weekly DA-EPOCH-R. Toxicity was manageable and there were no therapy-related deaths.

Dose-adjusted EPOCH plus rituximab is an effective regimen in patients with poor-prognostic untreated diffuse large B-cell lymphoma: results from a prospective observational study.

This study was designed to assess the efficacy and safety of an infusional DA-EPOCH (dose-adjusted etoposide/vincristine/doxorubicin/bolus cyclophosphamide/prednisone) and rituximab (DA-EPOCH-R) regimen for patients with poor prognosis diffuse large B-cell lymphoma (DLBCL). Thirty-three patients, aged 21-76 years, with an age-adjusted International Prognostic Index (IPI) of 2 or 3, were enrolled, and 31/33 patients were evaluable for response. Consolidative radiation therapy was given to eight patients with bulky (> or =10 cm) disease at presentation.

Changes in the natural history of progressive multifocal leukoencephalopathy in HIV-negative lymphoproliferative disorders: impact of novel therapies.

The aims of this study were to evaluate the clinical characteristics of HIV-negative patients affected by lymphoproliferative disorders (LPD) who developed progressive multifocal leukoencephalopathy (PML), to delineate the risk factors, and to analyze whether the new antineoplastic therapies are changing the natural history of this infectious disease. We retrospectively analyzed 46 cases with confirmed LPD-associated PML published from 1958 to 2004. Patients were stratified according to two different time periods: group A included patients diagnosed before 1989, and group B included patients diagnosed since 1990, after introduction of purine analogues.

Nonfatal pulmonary Trichoderma viride infection in an adult patient with acute myeloid leukemia: report of one case and review of the literature.

Trichoderma species have been recognized to be pathogenic in immunosuppressed hosts with increasing frequency. Trichoderma species are responsible for continuous ambulatory peritoneal dialysis associated peritonitis and infections in immunocompromised patients with a hematologic malignancy or solid organ transplantation. Trichoderma longibrachiatum is the most common species involved in these infections.

Elderly haematological patients with chemotherapy-induced febrile neutropenia have similar rates of infection and outcome to younger adults: a prospective study of risk-adapted therapy.

We prospectively evaluated 131 consecutive episodes of fever and chemotherapy-induced neutropenia in 85 adults with haematological malignancies to determine whether older patients (aged < 60 years) have different causes of fever and outcome than younger adults (aged < 60 years). Patients were stratified into high-risk and low-risk groups according to previously published criteria. High-risk patients received ceftazidime plus amikacin and low-risk patients received ceftazidime alone.

Apoptotic rate: a new indicator for the quantification of the incidence of apoptosis in cell cultures.

Background: Late apoptotic cells divide into apoptotic bodies and are missed by current detection methods. This results in an artificially low apoptotic index (AI).

Methods: This study proposes a flow cytometry-based ratiometric method that uses an internal reference standard of microbeads combined with fluorescein-annexin V binding and 7-aminoactinomycin D to enumerate viable, necrotic, and early and late apoptotic cells within specific subsets of a heterogeneous culture.

Iatrogenesis or bad luck? relapse of an LMP1-positive follicular lymphoma after immunosuppression for hepatitis-associated aplastic anaemia.

A 55-year-old man suffered a cutaneous relapse of an LMP1-positive follicular lymphoma after treatment with antithymocyte globulin and cyclosporine A (CSA) for a hepatitis-associated aplastic anaemia (AA). Rituximab was not effective, so CSA was tapered off. Lymphoma masses did not regress but AA relapsed.

Spontaneous gas gangrene in malignant lymphoma: an underreported complication?

We report a case of spontaneous gas gangrene (SGG), the most rapidly progressive form of clostridial infection, in a patient with non-Hodgkin's lymphoma (NHL). We review the literature and examine the association between these two entities. A 43-year-old man with NHL developed fatal C.