Natural killer cell cytotoxicity is a predictor of outcome for patients with high risk myelodysplastic syndrome and oligoblastic acute myeloid leukemia treated with azacytidine.

The aim of the present study was to identify biomarkers predictive of the outcome of patients with high-risk myelodysplastic syndrome and oligoblastic acute myeloid leukemia (AML) treated with 5-azacytidine (AZA). We prospectively examined the association between NK-cytotoxic activity, myeloid-derived suppressor cells (MDSCs), and T-regulatory cells (Tregs) on the overall survival (OS) of patients. Patients with NK-cytotoxicity above a critical threshold had a longer duration of response and survived longer than patients with severe impairment of NK-cytotoxicity.

Irradiated mononuclear cells express significant in vitro cytotoxic activity: promise for in vivo clinical efficacy of irradiated mismatched donor lymphocytes infusion.

Background: Relapse of the original disease remains the most common cause of treatment failure after allogeneic hematopoietic stem cell transplantation (allo-SCT). Patients who relapse post-allo-SCT can achieve prolonged remission after donor lymphocyte infusion. Donor lymphocyte infusion as well as other immunotherapeutic strategies are usually complicated by severe graft versus host disease.

Extracorporeal photopheresis in refractory chronic graft-versus-host disease: the influence on peripheral blood T cell subpopulations. A study by the Hellenic Association of Hematology.

Extracorporeal photopheresis (ECP) has been established as an effective treatment modality for patients with chronic extensive graft-versus host disease (GVHD). In the present study, we evaluated the influence of ECP on the numbers of CD4+, CD8+, CD20+, CD56+ cells, and on T-regulatory (Tregs), as well as on the numbers of naïve, central memory (CM), and effector memory (EM) T-cells in patients treated for refractory chronic GVHD. Flow cytometric analysis of peripheral blood lymphocytes was performed for the calculation of the different T-cell subsets.