Using BCG Vaccine to Enhance Nonspecific Protection of Health Care Workers During the COVID-19 Pandemic: A Randomized Controlled Trial.

Background: The BCG (Bacillus Calmette-Guérin) vaccine can induce nonspecific protection against unrelated infections. We aimed to test the effect of BCG on absenteeism and health of Danish health care workers (HCWs) during the coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) pandemic.

Methods: A single-blinded randomized controlled trial included 1221 HCWs from 9 Danish hospitals.

In-vitro influence of mycophenolate mofetil (MMF) and Ciclosporin A (CsA) on cytokine induced killer (CIK) cell immunotherapy.

Background: Cytokine-induced-killer (CIK) cells are a promising immunotherapeutic approach for impending relapse following hematopoietic stem cell transplantation (HSCT). However, there is a high risk for treatment failure associated with severe graft versus host disease (GvHD) necessitating pharmaceutical intervention post-transplant. Whether immunosuppression with mycophenolate mofetil (MMF) or Ciclosporin A (CsA) influences the cytotoxic effect of CIK cell immunotherapy is still an open issue.

Impact of minimal residual disease detection prior to autologous stem cell transplantation for post-transplant outcome in high risk neuroblastoma.

Autologous stem cell transplantation (SCT) has become standard therapy in high risk stage IV neuroblastoma (NB) patients. Residual NB cells in the bone marrow (BM) shortly before SCT may shape the overall survival.Thus, we sought to thoroughly investigate minimal residual disease (MRD) in BM prior to SCT using conventional and real time RT-PCR for tyrosine hydroxylase (TH) as well as morphology.

Rapid immune recovery and low TRM in haploidentical stem cell transplantation in children and adolescence using CD3/CD19-depleted stem cells.

Allogeneic stem cell transplantation has become an important option in the curative treatment of many patients with malignant and non-malignant systemic diseases. Non-availability of HLA identical donors can limit access to this life-saving treatment, especially in ethnic minority patients, for whom identical donors are often not available [1,2]. For many years, a central aim has been the development of stem cell transplantation across the HLA barrier and the use of haploidentical parents as stem cell donors.