Effects of COVID-19 on Pediatric Cancer Care: A Multicenter Study of 11 Middle Eastern Countries.

During the COVID-19 pandemic, major challenges are facing pediatric cancer centers regarding access to cancer centers, continuity of the anti-cancer therapy, hospital admission, and infection protection precautions. Pediatric oncologists actively treating children with cancer from 29 cancer centers at 11 countries were asked to answer a survey from May 2020 to August 2020 either directly or through the internet. COVID-19 pandemic affected the access to pediatric cancer care in the form of difficulty in reaching the center in 22 (75.9%) centers and affection of patients' flow in 21 (72.4%) centers. Health care professionals (HCP) were infected with COVID-19 in 20 (69%) surveyed centers. Eighteen centers (62%) modified the treatment guidelines. Care of follow-up patients was provided in-hospital in 8(27.6%) centers, through telemedicine in 10 (34.5%) centers, and just delayed in 11 (38%) centers. Pediatric oncologists had different expectations about the future effects of COVID-19 on pediatric cancer care. Seventy-six percent of pediatric oncologists think the COVID-19 pandemic will increase the use of telemedicine. Fifty-five percent of pediatric oncologists think if the COVID-19 pandemic persists, we will need to change chemotherapy protocols to less myelosuppressive ones. Collaborative studies are required to prioritize pediatric cancer management during COVID-19 era.

Empirical treatment with parenteral acyclovir in a child with herpes simplex virus hepatitis and acute lymphoblastic leukemia.

Introduction: Hepatitis secondary to Herpes Simplex Virus (HSV) infection is a complication that often leads to fatal hepatic failure. Early treatment with the anti-viral drug, acyclovir, is life-saving. In view of the non-specific nature of the signs and symptoms associated with HSV hepatitis, diagnosis is often made late during the course of the disease; a factor that largely contributes to the high mortality rate of this treatable disease complication. There is thus a growing consensus in the field to initiate empirical treatment with acyclovir once suspicion of HSV hepatitis is raised even before reaching a conclusive diagnosis. Presentation of case: We present clinical evidence on the benefit of starting empirical acyclovir treatment on the outcome of patients suffering from HSV hepatitis. We report two cases of HSV hepatitis in children with cancer. One case presented with fulminant hepatitis which was fatal and the diagnosis was only reached post mortem. In the second case, there was enough suspicion of HSV hepatitis to start early empirical acyclovir therapy. The diagnosis was confirmed 48 hours following the initiation of treatment and the early intervention with anti-virals proved to be life-saving. Discussion: In both cases above, the following symptoms were shared; fever, elevated transaminase levels and mucositis without clear cutaneous lesions. HSV hepatitis should thus be considered in the differential diagnosis of immuonocomprimised patients exhibiting the above symptoms. Conclusion: Due to the frequent delay in HSV diagnosis and the safety of acyclovir, we recommend empirically administering acyclovir in patients suspected of HSV hepatitis.

Hematopoietic stem cell transplant versus chemotherapy plus tyrosine kinase inhibitor in the treatment of pediatric Philadelphia chromosome-positive acute lymphoblastic leukemia (ALL).

BACKGROUND: Philadelphia chromosome-positive acute lymphoblastic leukemia (Ph+ ALL) remained until recently the molecular genetic abnormality associated with the worst outcome. Hematopoietic stem cell transplant (HSCT) was considered the treatment of choice, however, recent data have indicated that chemotherapy plus tyrosine kinase inhibitor (TKI) maybe an alternative effective therapy. METHODS: We conducted a retrospective analysis of children (<18 years) with Ph+ ALL who were treated at King Hussein Cancer Center (KHCC) from January 2003 till December 2011. RESULTS: Over a 9 year period, 411 children were diagnosed and treated for ALL at KHCC. Twenty three (6.6%) had Ph+ ALL; 16 males and 7 females. Median age at diagnosis was 9.5 years (range 1.67-17). The median white blood cell count was 58.6×10(3)/µL (range 1.6-459). Twelve patients underwent HSCT from a full matched related donor; and 10 were treated with intensive chemotherapy plus TKI (imatinib). Those who underwent HSCT were significantly older (P=0.004) and had a higher leukocyte count at diagnosis (P=0.53). After a median follow up of 42.2 months (range 12.7-107), the estimated 5 year event free survival (EFS) and overall survival (OS) were 75% and 91.6%, respectively, for those who underwent HSCT as primary therapy and 49.3% and 83.3%, respectively, for those treated with chemotherapy plus imatinib. There was no significant difference in EFS (P=0.98) or OS (P=1) between the two treatment modalities. CONCLUSIONS: Our results indicate that chemotherapy plus TKI may be a reasonable treatment option for some children with Ph+ ALL.

Publication bias in pediatric hematology and oncology: analysis of abstracts presented at the annual meeting of the American Society of Pediatric Hematology and Oncology.

Publication bias (PB) is a threat to the validity of medical literature, and has not been studied in the field of pediatric hematology/oncology. We analyzed the abstracts presented at the 2005 American Society of Pediatric Hematology/Oncology annual meeting to assess for PB. Abstracts were categorized by type of research, number of centers, funding status, presentation format, sample size, statistical significance, and the direction of results. Publication status was determined by searching PubMed. Thirty nine abstracts (51%) were categorized as clinical studies, 67 (36%) as basic research, and 24 (13%) as others. One hundred and twenty three abstracts (67%) were considered to have positive results, 14 (8%) negative results, and 47 (25%) with neutral or not stated results. About 62% of the abstracts were published in peer-reviewed journals at a median time to publication of 19 months (IQR = 11-29 months). Abstracts with positive results were more likely to get published than others (combined negative and neutral results) (P = .002). Factors like sample size, number of centers, or statistical significance reporting did not affect the publication rate. Our data suggests the existence of PB in the field of pediatric hematology/oncology. Still, further analysis of other international meetings is needed to validate our findings.

6-Mercaptopurine-induced recurrent acute pancreatitis in children with acute lymphoblastic leukemia/lymphoma.

Two children with acute lymphoblastic leukemia/lymphoma developed recurrent acute pancreatitis during treatment; the etiology was presumed to be secondary to 6-mercaptopurine (6MP). Both had no further attacks after discontinuation of 6MP. Acute pancreatitis secondary to 6MP is extremely rare in acute leukemia/lymphoma although it has been reported in patients with other conditions like inflammatory bowel disease; the reason for this difference is not clearly understood.