Publications by authors named "Maria C Finazzi"

We analyzed the neutrophil-to-lymphocyte ratio (NLR) in 1508 patients with PV and found that those with an NLR ≥ 5 were generally older, had a longer disease history, and had higher cardiovascular risk factors, more arterial thrombosis, and more aggressive blood counts, indicating a more proliferative disease. NLR was an accurate predictor of mortality, with patients with NLR ≥ 5 having significantly worse overall survival and more than twice the mortality rate compared to those with NLR < 5. Multivariable models confirmed that increasing age, previous venous thrombosis and NLR ≥ 5 were strong predictors of death, further influenced by cardiovascular risk factors.

View Article and Find Full Text PDF

Heterogeneous approaches exist in regard to the management of disease-related co-morbidities in potential allogeneic haematopoietic cell transplantation (allo-HCT) candidates with myelofibrosis (MF). The EBMT Chronic Malignancies Working Party launched an electronic survey to evaluate how MF-specific comorbidities are approached and whether they ultimately affect the decision to transplant. A total of 41/63 (65%) Centers, all of whom were experienced in the management of MF allo-HCT, responded.

View Article and Find Full Text PDF
Article Synopsis
  • The study compared the effects of Ropeginterferon alfa-2b (Ropeg) and phlebotomy-only (Phl-O) on the neutrophil-to-lymphocyte ratio (NLR) in 126 patients with low-risk polycythemia vera (PV).
  • Results showed that Ropeg significantly reduced NLR, driven mainly by a drop in neutrophils, and this reduction correlated with better symptom management and lower JAK2 variant allele frequency.
  • The findings suggest that monitoring NLR could be a useful tool for guiding Ropeg treatment in early-stage low-risk PV patients, particularly when distinguishing between treatment responders and non-responders.
View Article and Find Full Text PDF
Article Synopsis
  • - Allogeneic hematopoietic stem cell transplantation (HSCT) is currently the only curative treatment for patients with Myelodysplastic syndromes (MDS), traditionally evaluated using the International Prognostic Scoring System-Revised (IPSS-R).
  • - Recent advancements in next generation sequencing have led to the development of molecular prognostic scores like IPSS-M, which provide more detailed risk assessment for MDS patients.
  • - A study analyzing 57 MDS patients showed that nearly half were re-stratified from IPSS-R to IPSS-M, indicating better prognostic value with IPSS-M, particularly highlighting that very high-risk patients had worse post-transplant outcomes, underscoring the importance of molecular data
View Article and Find Full Text PDF

Transplant-associated thrombotic microangiopathy (TA-TMA) is a severe complication following hematopoietic stem cell transplantation (HSCT). No approved treatments are currently available. This study presents real-world data obtained with narsoplimab, a human immunoglobulin G4 monoclonal antibody that inhibits MASP-2, the effector enzyme of the lectin pathway of the complement system.

View Article and Find Full Text PDF

We aimed to compare outcomes following treosulfan (TREO) or busulfan (BU) conditioning in a large cohort of myelofibrosis (MF) patients from the EBMT registry. A total of 530 patients were included; 73 received TREO and 457 BU (BU ≤ 6.4 mg/kg in 134, considered RIC, BU > 6.

View Article and Find Full Text PDF

ABO-group major incompatibility hematopoietic stem cell transplantation (HSCT) increases the risk of delayed red cell engraftment and other immunological complications. In this study, we evaluated the efficacy of pre-transplant infusion of rituximab in patients with ABO-incompatibility in improving red blood cell engraftment after HSCT, measured by time to reach transfusion independence. We performed a retrospective, single-center study including 131 consecutive patients transplanted with major or bidirectional ABO-incompatible grafts between 1st January 2013 and 31st December 2019.

View Article and Find Full Text PDF

BACKGROUND: Whether phlebotomy alone can adequately maintain target hematocrit in patients with low-risk polycythemia vera (PV) remains elusive. METHODS: In a phase 2 open-label randomized trial, we compared ropeginterferon alfa-2b (ropeg; 100 μg every 2 weeks) with phlebotomy only regarding maintenance of a median hematocrit level (≤45%) over 12 months in the absence of progressive disease (primary end point). In follow-up, crossover to the alternative treatment group was allowed if the primary end point was not met.

View Article and Find Full Text PDF

In patients with low-risk polycythemia vera, exposure to low-dose Ropeginterferon alfa-2b (Ropeg) 100 µg every 2 weeks for 2 years was more effective than the standard treatment of therapeutic phlebotomy in maintaining target hematocrit (HCT) (< 45%) with a reduction in the need for phlebotomy without disease progression. In the present paper, we analyzed drug survival, defined as a surrogate measure of the efficacy, safety, adherence, and tolerability of Ropeg in patients followed up to 5 years. During the first 2 years, Ropeg and phlebotomy-only (Phl-O) were discontinued in 33% and 70% of patients, respectively, for lack of response (12 in the Ropeg arm vs.

View Article and Find Full Text PDF

Allogeneic hematopoietic cell transplantation (allo-HCT) is curative for myelofibrosis (MF) but assessing risk-benefit in individual patients is challenging. This complexity is amplified in CALR-mutated MF patients, as they live longer with conventional treatments compared to other molecular subtypes. We analyzed outcomes of 346 CALR-mutated MF patients who underwent allo-HCT in 123 EBMT centers between 2005 and 2019.

View Article and Find Full Text PDF

Purpose Of Review: This review focuses on vascular complications associated with chronic myeloproliferative neoplasms (MPN) and more specifically aims to discuss the clinical and biological evidence supporting the existence of a link between clonal hematopoiesis, cardiovascular events (CVE), and solid cancer (SC).

Recent Findings: The MPN natural history is driven by uncontrolled clonal myeloproliferation sustained by acquired somatic mutations in driver (JAK2, CALR, and MPL) and non-driver genes, involving epigenetic (e.g.

View Article and Find Full Text PDF

Allogeneic hematopoietic cell transplant (allo-HCT) provides the only potential route to long-term remission in patients diagnosed with blast phase transformation of myeloproliferative neoplasm (BP-MPN). We report on a large, retrospective European Society for Blood and Marrow Transplantation registry-based study of BP-MPN patients undergoing allo-HCT. BP-MPN patients undergoing first allo-HCT between 2005 and 2019 were included.

View Article and Find Full Text PDF
Article Synopsis
  • Ruxolitinib (RUX) is a treatment for myelofibrosis (MF) but often loses effectiveness over time, leading to worse overall survival after stopping treatment.
  • The study identified key predictors of survival for RUX-treated MF patients, such as dose, spleen size change, and need for blood transfusions after 6 months of treatment.
  • A new prognostic model called Response to Ruxolitinib After 6 Months (RR6) was developed, categorizing patients into low, intermediate, and high-risk groups for survival, helping guide treatment decisions.
View Article and Find Full Text PDF

Background: There is no evidence that phlebotomy alone is sufficient to steadily maintain haematocrit on target level in low-risk patients with polycythaemia vera. This study aimed to compare the efficacy and safety of ropeginterferon alfa-2b on top of the standard phlebotomy regimen with phlebotomy alone.

Methods: In 2017, we launched the Low-PV study, a multicentre, open-label, two-arm, parallel-group, investigator-initiated, phase 2 randomised trial with a group-sequential adaptive design.

View Article and Find Full Text PDF

Among 382 patients with WHO-defined prefibrotic myelofibrosis (pre-PMF) followed for a median of 6.9 years, fibrotic or leukemic transformation or death accounts for 15, 7, and 27% of cases, respectively. A multistate model was applied to analyze survival data taking into account intermediate states that are part of the clinical course of pre-PMF, including overt PMF and acute myeloid leukemia (AML).

View Article and Find Full Text PDF

Pre-fibrotic myelofibrosis (pre-PMF) and essential thrombocythemia (ET) are characterized by similarly increased rate of thrombotic events, but no study specifically analyzed risk factors for thrombosis in pre-PMF. In a multicenter cohort of 382 pre-PMF patients collected in this study, the rate of arterial and venous thrombosis after diagnosis was 1.0 and 0.

View Article and Find Full Text PDF
Article Synopsis
  • Researchers studied 201 adults who had a special transplant using a medicine called alemtuzumab to prevent a disease called graft-versus-host disease (GVHD).
  • They found that 34% of patients experienced classic acute GVHD, while only 4% developed chronic GVHD over two years.
  • The study also found that having classic acute GVHD in the past increases the chance of developing chronic GVHD later on.
View Article and Find Full Text PDF

We present real-world data on all ruxolitinib-treated myelofibrosis patients in a 10-million-resident region, with a follow-up of 2 years. We found no evidence of an increased risk of developing lymphomas.

View Article and Find Full Text PDF

Prior studies have reported high response rates with recombinant interferon-α (rIFN-α) therapy in patients with essential thrombocythemia (ET) and polycythemia vera (PV). To further define the role of rIFN-α, we investigated the outcomes of pegylated-rIFN-α2a (PEG) therapy in ET and PV patients previously treated with hydroxyurea (HU). The Myeloproliferative Disorders Research Consortium (MPD-RC)-111 study was an investigator-initiated, international, multicenter, phase 2 trial evaluating the ability of PEG therapy to induce complete (CR) and partial (PR) hematologic responses in patients with high-risk ET or PV who were either refractory or intolerant to HU.

View Article and Find Full Text PDF