Publications by authors named "Michel Zwaan"

Anti-thymocyte globulin (ATG) is used in pediatric allogeneic hematopoietic cell transplantation (HCT) to prevent graft-versus-host-disease (GvHD) and graft failure (GF). Poor or delayed T-cell recovery, associated with increased mortality, is the main toxicity of ATG. Model-based precision dosing of ATG (MBD-ATG) minimizes toxicity while maintaining efficacy.

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Introduction: Despite druggable events to be present in 80 % of neuroblastomapatients within the Princess Máxima Center precision medicine program 'iTHER', clinical uptake of treatment recommendations has been low, and the clinical impact for individual patients remains hard to predict. This stresses the need for a method integrating genomics and transcriptomics with functional approaches into therapeutic decision making.

Methods: We aimed to launch an online repository integrating genomics and transcriptomics with high-throughput drug screening (HTS) of nineteen commonly used neuroblastoma cell lines and fifteen neuroblastoma patient-derived organoids (NBL-PDOs).

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Background: Proteolysis targeting chimeras (PROTACs) are heterobifunctional small molecules that utilize the ubiquitin-proteasome system to selectively degrade target proteins. This innovative technology has shown remarkable efficacy and specificity in degrading oncogenic proteins and has progressed through various stages of preclinical and clinical development for hematologic malignancies, including adult acute myeloid leukemia (AML). However, the application of PROTACs in pediatric AML remains largely unexplored.

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Background: The effect of age on doxorubicin pharmacokinetics remains inconclusive, especially in patients at the extremes of the age spectrum. We developed a population pharmacokinetic model to further investigate the impact of age on the pharmacokinetics of doxorubicin.

Methods: A three-compartment model, incorporating allometric scaling was developed to describe doxorubicin pharmacokinetics across all ages.

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Article Synopsis
  • Acute myeloid leukemia (AML) is a serious blood cancer with a complex genetic background, particularly affecting children through specific gene rearrangements associated with poor treatment outcomes.
  • * In AML, translocations involving the NUP98 gene create fusion proteins that disrupt normal cell functions, leading to abnormal cell growth and structure.
  • * This review explores the roles of NUP98 fusion proteins in AML and discusses potential new treatment strategies targeting these specific genetic alterations.
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Because of the low mutational burden and consequently, fewer potential neoantigens, children with acute myeloid leukemia (AML) are thought to have a T cell-depleted or 'cold' tumor microenvironment and may have a low likelihood of response to T cell-directed immunotherapies. Understanding the composition, phenotype, and spatial organization of T cells and other microenvironmental populations in the pediatric AML bone marrow (BM) is essential for informing future immunotherapeutic trials about targetable immune-evasion mechanisms specific to pediatric AML. Here, we conducted a multidimensional analysis of the tumor immune microenvironment in pediatric AML and non-leukemic controls.

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Article Synopsis
  • Aberrant expression of HOX and MEIS1 family genes in certain leukemias disrupts normal blood cell differentiation and contributes to leukemia development.
  • Menin inhibitors can target the interaction between KMT2A and menin, reducing the abnormal expression of key factors and promoting differentiation in these leukemias.
  • A collaborative effort among pediatric and adult specialists aims to advance menin inhibitors in treatment, offering a comprehensive overview of clinical trials and advocating for inclusive trial designs for youth.
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Patients with relapsed/refractory acute lymphoblastic leukemia (ALL) or lymphoblastic lymphoma (LL) have poor outcomes compared with newly diagnosed, treatment-naïve patients. The phase 2, open-label DELPHINUS study evaluated daratumumab (16 mg/kg IV) plus backbone chemotherapy in children with relapsed/refractory B-cell ALL (n = 7) after ≥2 relapses, and children and young adults with T-cell ALL (children, n = 24; young adults, n = 5) or LL (n = 10) after first relapse. The primary end point was complete response (CR) in the B-cell ALL (end of cycle 2) and T-cell ALL (end of cycle 1) cohorts, after which patients could proceed off study to allogeneic hematopoietic stem cell transplant (HSCT).

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Purpose: Revumenib, an oral, small molecule inhibitor of the menin-lysine methyltransferase 2A (KMT2A) interaction, showed promising efficacy and safety in a phase I study of heavily pretreated patients with -rearranged () acute leukemia. Here, we evaluated the activity of revumenib in individuals with relapsed/refractory (R/R) acute leukemia.

Methods: AUGMENT-101 is a phase I/II, open-label, dose-escalation and expansion study of revumenib conducted across 22 clinical sites in five countries (ClinicalTrials.

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In this study, we leveraged machine-learning tools by evaluating expression of genes of pharmacological relevance to standard-AML chemotherapy (ara-C/daunorubicin/etoposide) in a discovery-cohort of pediatric AML patients (N = 163; NCT00136084 ) and defined a 5-gene-drug resistance score (ADE-RS5) that was predictive of outcome (high MRD1 positivity p = 0.013; lower EFS p < 0.0001 and OS p < 0.

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Therapy-related myeloid neoplasms (t-MN) arise as a complication of chemo- and/or radiotherapy. Although t-MN can occur both in adult and childhood cancer survivors, the mechanisms driving therapy-related leukemogenesis likely vary across different ages. Chemotherapy is thought to induce driver mutations in children, whereas in adults pre-existing mutant clones are selected by the exposure.

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Precision cancer medicine brought the promise of improving outcomes for patients with cancer. High-throughput molecular profiling of tumors at treatment failure aims to direct a patient to a treatment matched to the tumor profile. In this way, improved outcome has been achieved in a small number of patients whose tumors exhibit unique targetable oncogenic drivers.

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Over the past 10 years, institutional and national molecular tumor boards have been implemented for relapsed or refractory pediatric cancer to prioritize targeted drugs for individualized treatment based on actionable oncogenic lesions, including the Dutch iTHER platform. Hematological malignancies form a minority in precision medicine studies. Here, we report on 56 iTHER leukemia/lymphoma patients for which we considered cell surface markers and oncogenic aberrations as actionable events, supplemented with ex vivo drug sensitivity for six patients.

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Article Synopsis
  • Inotuzumab ozogamicin is an approved treatment for relapsed/refractory B-cell precursor acute lymphoblastic leukemia (BCP-ALL) in adults, but its pharmacokinetics in children have not been studied until now.
  • This research analyzed serum concentrations from a diverse patient group, utilizing a modified adult pharmacokinetic model to understand how the drug behaves in pediatric patients with BCP-ALL.
  • Results indicated that older pediatric patients showed a different drug clearance pattern, with higher drug exposure correlating to better treatment responses among those with relapsed/refractory BCP-ALL.
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Article Synopsis
  • Pediatric acute myeloid leukemia (AML) and acute lymphoblastic leukemia (ALL) show good survival rates, but outcomes are poor for patients with gene translocations.
  • Recent interest has grown in menin inhibitors like revumenib for treating KMT2A-fusion-driven leukemias, though resistance remains a significant challenge.
  • Our study found that ALL cells respond quickly to revumenib, while AML cells show slower responses; combining revumenib with the DOT1L inhibitor pinometostat may enhance treatment efficacy, highlighting the need for personalized patient approaches.
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The treatment of childhood acute lymphoblastic leukemia (ALL) has reached overall survival rates exceeding 90%. The present and future challenges are to cure the remainder of patients still dying from disease, and to reduce morbidity and mortality in those who can be cured with standard-of-care chemotherapy by replacing toxic chemotherapy elements while retaining cure rates. With the novel therapeutic options introduced in the last years, including immunotherapies and targeted antibodies, the treatment of ALL is undergoing major changes.

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Article Synopsis
  • The Innovative Therapies for Children with Cancer (ITCC) consortium aims to enhance access to new cancer treatments for children and adolescents, and its clinical trial progress from 2003 to 2018 was examined.
  • A total of 61 trials, primarily industry-sponsored, involved 3,198 patients, showing a significant increase in trials and a shift toward biomarker-driven and combination targeted therapies in the second study period.
  • The findings indicate a transformation in early drug development for childhood cancers, emphasizing more advanced trial designs and regulatory compliance to improve patient access to innovative treatments.
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Article Synopsis
  • * Three new recurring KMT2A-rearranged groups were identified, and a significant variation in 5-year event-free survival rates was observed across 13 different groups, highlighting the impact of genetic factors on patient outcomes.
  • * The research suggests incorporating five specific adverse-risk KMT2A fusions into current risk stratification models and calls for further studies to confirm the associations
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Objectives: Childhood cancer survivors are at risk for premature ovarian insufficiency, especially after treatment with alkylating agents. The objective of this report is to highlight a case in which this phenomenon caused a false-positive pregnancy test.

Case Presentation: A workup was performed in a 14-year-old girl with a positive pregnancy test.

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Article Synopsis
  • T cell-based immunotherapies have shown promise for various cancers, but their effectiveness in adult and pediatric acute myeloid leukemia (AML) is still underdeveloped.
  • Research has predominantly focused on T cells, neglecting the important role of innate immune cells like monocytes and natural killer (NK) cells, which may impact the tumor's ability to suppress immune responses.
  • A detailed understanding of the innate immune environment in AML is essential for improving current therapies and developing new immunotherapy strategies that enhance T cell function.
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Purpose: Outcomes for children with relapsed and refractory high-risk neuroblastoma (RR-HRNB) remain dismal. The BEACON Neuroblastoma trial (EudraCT 2012-000072-42) evaluated three backbone chemotherapy regimens and the addition of the antiangiogenic agent bevacizumab (B).

Materials And Methods: Patients age 1-21 years with RR-HRNB with adequate organ function and performance status were randomly assigned in a 3 × 2 factorial design to temozolomide (T), irinotecan-temozolomide (IT), or topotecan-temozolomide (TTo) with or without B.

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Article Synopsis
  • Advances in managing childhood acute myeloid leukemia (AML) have been made, but about one third of patients still face fatal outcomes due to challenges like chemoresistance and relapses.
  • Insights into the genetics of AML have revealed specific patient subsets linked to abnormalities in HOXA, MEIS1, and other key genes, suggesting avenues for targeted therapies.
  • Menin inhibitors show promise in preclinical and early-phase clinical trials for treating specific types of AML, and the PedAL/EUPAL project aims to facilitate further testing of these new agents in children.
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Because of the low mutational burden and consequently, fewer potential neoantigens, children with acute myeloid leukemia (AML) are thought to have a T cell-depleted or 'cold' tumor microenvironment and may have a low likelihood of response to T cell-directed immunotherapies. Understanding the composition, phenotype, and spatial organization of T cells and other microenvironmental populations in the pediatric AML bone marrow (BM) is essential for informing future immunotherapeutic trials about targetable immune-evasion mechanisms specific to pediatric AML. Here, we conducted a multidimensional analysis of the tumor immune microenvironment in pediatric AML and non-leukemic controls.

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