Blastic Plasmacytoid Dendritic Cell Neoplasm.

While there is a high initial response rate with standard chemotherapeutic regimens for blastic plasmacytoid dendritic cell neoplasm (BPDCN), the responses are typically not durable and this remains a very aggressive disease with generally poor outcomes. For this reason, the standard approach for eligible patients has been high-dose induction chemotherapy preferably with acute lymphoblastic leukemia (ALL)-based regimens followed by consolidation with allogeneic hematopoietic stem cell transplantation (alloHSCT). Unfortunately, many patients with this disease are elderly and/or frail and cannot tolerate this therapy, and the low-dose regimens being used in this population are generally not as effective.

Risk Factors for Ovarian Carcinoma.

Ovarian cancer is the leading gynecologic killer of women in the United States. At diagnosis, most women present with advanced-stage disease. There are currently no effective screening strategies for average-risk women, thus understanding disease development and progression is important for developing risk-reduction strategies and identifying high-risk populations who can benefit from preventive surgery.

Committee II: Guidelines for cytologic sampling techniques of lung and mediastinal lymph nodes.

The Papanicolaou Society of Cytopathology has developed a set of guidelines for pulmonary cytology including indications for bronchial brushings, washings, and endobronchial ultrasound guided transbronchial fine-needle aspiration (EBUS-TBNA), technical recommendations for cytological sampling, recommended terminology and classification schemes, recommendations for ancillary testing and recommendations for post-cytological management and follow-up. All recommendations are based on the expertise of the authors, an extensive literature review and feedback from presentations at national and international conferences. This document selectively presents the results of these discussions.

The advances in therapy of blastic plasmacytoid dendritic cell neoplasm.

Introduction: Blastic plasmacytoid dendritic cell neoplasm (BPDCN) is a rare and aggressive myeloid malignancy that contributes to <1% of all hematologic neoplasms. Before the introduction of various targeted agents, the therapeutic approach was based on regimens used for acute lymphoblastic or myeloid leukemia and non-Hodgkin's lymphoma (e.g.

Subcutaneous metastasis from recurrent basaloid squamous cell carcinoma of the esophagus.

Background: Esophageal cancer is the 11th most common cause of cancer mortality in the United States. It is aggressive in nature and has an ability to spread rapidly through direct extension, lymphatic spread, or hematogenously. With an estimated incidence of 1%, cutaneous metastases from esophageal cancer are extremely rare.

Lethal melanoma in children: a clinicopathological study of 12 cases.

Melanoma in children is rare, representing 3% of paediatric malignancies and <1% of all melanomas. Very few detailed descriptions of bona fide lethal childhood melanomas exist in the literature. We performed a retrospective clinicopathological review of 12 paediatric (≤16 years) melanoma patients who died of metastatic disease, including detailed assessment of architectural and cytomorphological features.

Antithymocyte globulin in allogeneic hematopoietic cell transplantation: benefits and limitations.

Significant advances have been made in allogeneic hematopoietic cell transplantation by reducing toxicities and optimizing its efficacy. Antithymocyte globulin (ATG) is an important in vivo T-cell depletion strategy, which reduces the risk of graft-versus-host disease in HLA-matched or -mismatched donor allografting. ATG effectively targets alloreactive T cells at the expense of potentially increasing the risk of post-hematopoietic cell transplantation infections and delayed immune reconstitution.

Minimal Residual Disease Assessment in the Context of Multiple Myeloma Treatment.

With contemporary therapeutic strategies in multiple myeloma, heretofore unseen depth and rate of responses are being achieved. These strategies have paralleled improvements in outcome of multiple myeloma patients. The integration of the next generation of proteasome inhibitors and antibody therapeutics promise continued improvements in therapy with the expectation of consistent depth of response not quantifiable by current clinical methods.

Clotrimazole troches induce supratherapeutic blood levels of sirolimus and tacrolimus in an allogeneic hematopoietic cell-transplant recipient resulting in acute kidney injury.

Allogeneic hematopoietic cell transplantation is a potential curative treatment option for various malignant and nonmalignant hematologic disorders. Patients undergoing an allogeneic hematopoietic cell transplant are prescribed immune-suppressant therapies to facilitate hematopoietic donor-cell engraftment and prevent graft-versus-host disease. Drug-drug interactions may occur, owing to exposure to complex multidrug regimens with narrow therapeutic windows and high toxicity profiles.

Akt and Hippo Pathways in Ewing's Sarcoma Tumors and Their Prognostic Significance.

Background: Ewing's sarcoma tumor is an aggressive malignancy of bone and soft tissue in children and young adults. Despite advances in modern therapy, metastasis occurs and results in high mortality. Intracellular molecules Yap, Akt, mTOR, and Erk are signaling pathway members that regulate the proliferation of tumor cells.

High-dose therapy and autologous hematopoietic cell transplantation as front-line consolidation in chronic lymphocytic leukemia: a systematic review.

High-dose therapy (HDT) followed by autologous hematopoietic cell transplantation (auto-HCT) is offered to patients with chronic lymphocytic leukemia (CLL) both as front-line consolidation and in the relapsed setting. The role of HDT in the front-line consolidation setting in CLL is uncertain. Literature search of PUBMED and Cochrane until 14 November 2014 and the last 2 years of abstracts from relevant conferences was undertaken.

Comparing i.v. BU dose intensity between two regimens (FB2 vs FB4) for allogeneic HCT for AML in CR1: a report from the Acute Leukemia Working Party of EBMT.

This retrospective analysis compared two regimens of fludarabine combined with i.v. BU 6.

Gemtuzumab ozogamicin for treatment of newly diagnosed acute myeloid leukaemia: a systematic review and meta-analysis.

Evidence regarding the efficacy of gemtuzumab ozogamicin (GO) addition to standard induction chemotherapy in newly diagnosed acute myeloid leukaemia (AML) is conflicting. This systematic review aimed to identify and summarize all evidence regarding the benefits and harms of adding GO to conventional chemotherapy for induction treatment of AML. A comprehensive literature search of two databases (PUBMED and Cochrane) from inception up to November 22, 2012, and 4 years of proceedings from four major haematology/oncology conferences was undertaken.

Comparative efficacy of tandem autologous versus autologous followed by allogeneic hematopoietic cell transplantation in patients with newly diagnosed multiple myeloma: a systematic review and meta-analysis of randomized controlled trials.

Background: Despite advances in understanding of clinical, genetic, and molecular aspects of multiple myeloma (MM) and availability of more effective therapies, MM remains incurable. The autologous-allogeneic (auto-allo) hematopoietic cell transplantation (HCT) strategy is based on combining cytoreduction from high-dose (chemo- or chemoradio)-therapy with adoptive immunotherapy. However, conflicting results have been reported when an auto-allo HCT approach is compared to tandem autologous (auto-auto) HCT.

MRI appearance of disseminated osseous tuberculosis.

Disseminated osseous tuberculosis is a rare disease. This is a report of two cases of disseminated osseous tuberculosis imaged with MRI at 1.5-T, CT, plain radiography and bone scintigraphy.