A Possible Role for WNT5A Hypermethylation in Pediatric Acute Lymphoblastic Leukemia.

Objective: WNT5A is one of the most studied noncanonical WNT ligands and is shown to be deregulated in different tumor types. Our aim was to clarify whether hypermethylation might be the cause of low WNT5A mRNA levels and whether we could restore this downregulation by reversing the event.

Materials And Methods: The expression of WNT5A mRNA was studied in a large acute lymphoblastic leukemia (ALL) patient group (n=86) by quantitative real-time PCR.

Deferasirox Decreases Liver Iron Concentration in Iron-Overloaded Patients with Myelodysplastic Syndromes, Aplastic Anemia and Other Rare Anemias.

Iron overload in transfusion-dependent patients with rare anemias can be managed with chelation therapy. This study evaluated deferasirox efficacy and safety in patients with myelodysplastic syndromes (MDS), aplastic anemia (AA) or other rare anemias. A 1-year, open-label, multicenter, single-arm, phase II trial was performed with deferasirox (10–40 mg/kg/day, based on transfusion frequency and therapeutic goals), including an optional 1-year extension.

Outcome in neuroblastoma.

Objective: To determine outcome of neuroblastoma (NBL) in children under 18 mo of age who had been treated with national protocols.

Methods: The characteristics and treatment outcomes of 27 children were evaluated retrospectively.

Results: The event-free survival (EFS) at 60 and 108 mo were 84.