Barriers to end-of-life discussions among hematologists: A qualitative study.

BACKGROUND: Integrated palliative care is correlated with earlier end-of-life discussion and improved quality of life. Patients with haematological malignancies are far less likely to receive care from specialist palliative or hospice services compared to other cancers. AIM: The main goal of this study was to determine hematologists' barriers to end-of-life discussions when potentially fatal hematological malignancies recur. DESIGN: Qualitative grounded theory study using individual interviews. SETTING/PARTICIPANTS: Hematologists ( n = 10) from four hematology units were asked about their relationships with their patients and their attitudes toward prognosis and end-of-life discussions at the time of recurrence. RESULTS: As long as there are potential treatments, hematologists fear that end-of-life discussions may undermine their relationship and the patient's trust. Because of their own representations, hematologists have great difficulty opening up to their patients' end-of-life wishes. When prognosis is uncertain, negative outcome, that is, death, is not fully anticipated. Persistent hope silences the threat of death. CONCLUSION: This study reveals some of the barriers clinicians face in initiating early discussion about palliative care or patients' end-of-life care plan. These difficulties may explain why early palliative care is little integrated into the hematology care model.

A phase II study of the oral JAK1/JAK2 inhibitor ruxolitinib in advanced relapsed/refractory Hodgkin lymphoma.

JAK2 constitutive activation/overexpression is common in classical Hodgkin lymphoma, and several cytokines stimulate Hodgkin lymphoma cells by recognizing JAK1-/JAK2-bound receptors. JAK blockade may thus be therapeutically beneficial in Hodgkin lymphoma. In this phase II study we assessed the safety and efficacy of ruxolitinib, an oral JAK1/2 inhibitor, in patients with relapsed/refractory Hodgkin lymphoma. The primary objective was overall response rate according to the International Harmonization Project 2007 criteria. Thirty-three patients with advanced disease (median number of prior lines of treatment: 5; refractory: 82%) were included; nine (27.3%) received at least six cycles of ruxolitinib and six (18.2%) received more than six cycles. The overall response rate after six cycles was 9.4% (3/32 patients). All three responders had partial responses; another 11 patients had transient stable disease. Best overall response rate was 18.8% (6/32 patients). Rapid alleviation of B-symptoms was common. The median duration of response was 7.7 months, median progression-free survival 3.5 months (95% CI: 1.9-4.6), and the median overall survival 27.1 months (95% CI: 14.4-27.1). Forty adverse events were reported in 14/33 patients (42.4%). One event led to treatment discontinuation, while 87.5% of patients recovered without sequelae. Twenty-five adverse events were grade 3 or higher. These events were mostly anemia (n=11), all considered related to ruxolitinib. Other main causes of grade 3 or higher adverse events included lymphopenia and infections. Of note, no cases of grade 4 neutropenia or thrombocytopenia were observed. Ruxolitinib shows signs of activity, albeit short-lived, beyond a simple anti-inflammatory effect. Its limited toxicity suggests that it has the potential to be combined with other therapeutic modalities. ClinicalTrials.gov: NCT01877005.

Disease and treatment characteristics of polycythemia vera patients in Belgium: Results from a scientific survey.

OBJECTIVE: The current survey aimed to gather predefined disease parameters and treatment strategies to characterize the polycythemia vera (PV) patient population in Belgium. METHODS: Cross-sectional data from PV patients, seen at least once between May 2014 and May 2015 at 10 sites in Belgium, were collected in aggregated form and analyzed descriptively and quantitatively. RESULTS: Data from 343 PV patients were collected. Of these, 174 (50.7%) were male and 256 (74.6%) were ≥60 years of age. Ninety-two (26.8%) had a prior history of thrombotic events. Considerable proportions of patients had increased hematological parameters (hematocrit > 45% [31.2%], leukocytes > 10 × 109 /L [33.3%], and platelet > 400 × 109 /L [38.2%]). Most patients had non-palpable spleen (284, 87.7%) and no phlebotomies during the past 6 months (197, 57.4%). Low-dose aspirin was given as thrombosis prophylaxis in 249 (72.6%) patients, while 232 (67.6%) received hydroxyurea (HU) as cytoreductive treatment. Forty-one patients (12.0%) were reported as resistant and/or intolerant to HU. Seventeen patients (5.0%) received ruxolitinib in the context of clinical trials. CONCLUSION: This survey provides better insight into the characteristics of Belgian PV patients and currently used treatment strategies. It shows that 232 (67.6%) PV patients continue to receive HU despite being potentially HU-resistant.

Benefits and pitfalls of pegylated interferon-α2a therapy in patients with myeloproliferative neoplasm-associated myelofibrosis: a French Intergroup of Myeloproliferative neoplasms (FIM) study.

We have previously described the safety and efficacy of pegylated interferon-α2a therapy in a cohort of 62 patients with myeloproliferative neoplasm-associated myelofibrosis followed in centers affiliated to the French Intergroup of Myeloproliferative neoplasms. In this study, we report their long-term outcomes and correlations with mutational patterns of driver and non-driver mutations analyzed by targeted next generation sequencing. The median age at diagnosis was 66 years old, the median follow-up since starting pegylated interferon was 58 months. At the time of analysis, 30 (48.4%) patients were alive including 16 still being treated with pegylated interferon. The median survival of patients with intermediate and high-risk prognostic Lille and dynamic International Prognostic Scoring System scores treated with pegylated interferon was increased in comparison to that of historical cohorts. In addition, overall survival was significantly correlated with the duration of pegylated interferon therapy (70 versus 30 months after 2 years of treatment, P<10-12). JAK2V617F allele burden was decreased by more than 50% in 58.8% of patients and two patients even achieved complete molecular response. Next-generation sequencing analyses performed in 49 patients showed that 28 (57.1%) of them carried non-driver mutations. The presence of at least one additional mutation was associated with a reduction of both overall and leukemia-free survival. These findings in a large series of patients with myelofibrosis suggest that pegylated interferon therapy may provide a survival benefit for patients with intermediate- or high-risk Lille and dynamic International Prognostic Scoring System scores. It also reduced the JAK2V617F allele burden in most patients. These results further support the use of pegylated interferon in selected patients with myelofibrosis.

The clinical relevance of imatinib plasma trough concentrations in chronic myeloid leukemia. A Belgian study.

This retrospective multicenter study in patients with chronic myeloid leukemia in chronic phase was undertaken to confirm the clinical relevance of imatinib plasma concentrations monitoring in daily practice. Forty-one patients, with 47 imatinib plasma measurements, were analyzed during treatment with imatinib given at a fixed 400mg daily dose. A significant inverse relationship of imatinib concentration with the patients' weight was observed (Pearson's test: p=0.02, R2=0.1). More interestingly, patients with poor response (switched to another tyrosine kinase inhibitor because of imatinib failure, or because of disease progression after an initial response) displayed a significantly lower mean imatinib concentration as compared to patients maintained on imatinib (822ng/mL vs 1099ng/mL; Student's t-test, p=0.04). Failure or disease progression occurred more often in patients in the lowest quartile of imatinib concentrations compared to patients in the highest quartile (p=0.02, logrank test). No correlation could be established with other biological or clinical parameter, including complete cytogenic response and major molecular response. IN CONCLUSION: in patients treated with imatinib at a fixed daily dose of 400mg, imatinib plasma concentrations decreased with increasing body weight and were lower in patients switched to another tyrosine kinase inhibitor due to imatinib failure. Systematic determination of imatinib plasma trough levels should be encouraged in such patients.

Loss of mutL homolog-1 (MLH1) expression promotes acquisition of oncogenic and inhibitor-resistant point mutations in tyrosine kinases.

Genomic instability drives cancer progression by promoting genetic abnormalities that allow for the multi-step clonal selection of cells with growth advantages. We previously reported that the IL-9-dependent TS1 cell line sequentially acquired activating substitutions in JAK1 and JAK3 upon successive selections for growth factor independent and JAK inhibitor-resistant cells, suggestive of a defect in mutation avoidance mechanisms. In the first part of this paper, we discovered that the gene encoding mutL homolog-1 (MLH1), a key component of the DNA mismatch repair system, is silenced by promoter methylation in TS1 cells. By means of stable ectopic expression and RNA interference methods, we showed that the high frequencies of growth factor-independent and inhibitor-resistant cells with activating JAK mutations can be attributed to the absence of MLH1 expression. In the second part of this paper, we confirm the clinical relevance of our findings by showing that chronic myeloid leukemia relapses upon ABL-targeted therapy correlated with a lower expression of MLH1 messenger RNA. Interestingly, the mutational profile observed in our TS1 model, characterized by a strong predominance of T:A>C:G transitions, was identical to the one described in the literature for primitive cells derived from chronic myeloid leukemia patients. Taken together, our observations demonstrate for the first time a causal relationship between MLH1-deficiency and incidence of oncogenic point mutations in tyrosine kinases driving cell transformation and acquired resistance to kinase-targeted cancer therapies.

JAK kinase targeting in hematologic malignancies: a sinuous pathway from identification of genetic alterations towards clinical indications.

Constitutive JAK-STAT pathway activation occurs in most myeloproliferative neoplasms as well as in a significant proportion of other hematologic malignancies, and is frequently a marker of poor prognosis. The underlying molecular alterations are heterogeneous as they include activating mutations in distinct components (cytokine receptor, JAK, STAT), overexpression (cytokine receptor, JAK) or rare JAK2 fusion proteins. In some cases, concomitant loss of negative regulators contributes to pathogenesis by further boosting the activation of the cascade. Exploiting the signaling bottleneck provided by the limited number of JAK kinases is an attractive therapeutic strategy for hematologic neoplasms driven by constitutive JAK-STAT pathway activation. However, given the conserved nature of the kinase domain among family members and the interrelated roles of JAK kinases in many physiological processes, including hematopoiesis and immunity, broad usage of JAK inhibitors in hematology is challenged by their narrow therapeutic window. Novel therapies are, therefore, needed. The development of more selective inhibitors is a questionable strategy as such inhibitors might abrogate the beneficial contribution of alleviating the cancer-related pro-inflammatory microenvironment and raise selective pressure to a threshold that allows the emergence of malignant subclones harboring drug-resistant mutations. In contrast, synergistic combinations of JAK inhibitors with drugs targeting cascades that work in concert with JAK-STAT pathway appear to be promising therapeutic alternatives to JAK inhibitors as monotherapies.

Distinct Acute Lymphoblastic Leukemia (ALL)-associated Janus Kinase 3 (JAK3) Mutants Exhibit Different Cytokine-Receptor Requirements and JAK Inhibitor Specificities.

JAK1 and JAK3 are recurrently mutated in acute lymphoblastic leukemia. These tyrosine kinases associate with heterodimeric cytokine receptors such as IL-7 receptor or IL-9 receptor, in which JAK1 is appended to the specific chain, and JAK3 is appended to the common gamma chain. Here, we studied the role of these receptor complexes in mediating the oncogenic activity of JAK3 mutants. Although JAK3(V674A) and the majority of other JAK3 mutants needed to bind to a functional cytokine receptor complex to constitutively activate STAT5, JAK3(L857P) was unexpectedly found to not depend on such receptor complexes for its activity, which was induced without receptor or JAK1 co-expression. Introducing a mutation in the FERM domain that abolished JAK-receptor interaction did not affect JAK3(L857P) activity, whereas it inhibited the other receptor-dependent mutants. The same cytokine receptor independence as for JAK3(L857P) was observed for homologous Leu(857) mutations of JAK1 and JAK2 and for JAK3(L875H). This different cytokine receptor requirement correlated with different functional properties in vivo and with distinct sensitivity to JAK inhibitors. Transduction of murine hematopoietic cells with JAK3(V674A) led homogenously to lymphoblastic leukemias in BALB/c mice. In contrast, transduction with JAK3(L857P) induced various types of lymphoid and myeloid leukemias. Moreover, ruxolitinib, which preferentially blocks JAK1 and JAK2, abolished the proliferation of cells transformed by the receptor-dependent JAK3(V674A), yet proved much less potent on cells expressing JAK3(L857P). These particular cells were, in contrast, more sensitive to JAK3-specific inhibitors. Altogether, our results showed that different JAK3 mutations induce constitutive activation through distinct mechanisms, pointing to specific therapeutic perspectives.

Cooperating JAK1 and JAK3 mutants increase resistance to JAK inhibitors.

The acquisition of growth signal self-sufficiency is 1 of the hallmarks of cancer. We previously reported that the murine interleukin-9-dependent TS1 cell line gives rise to growth factor-independent clones with constitutive activation of the Janus kinase (JAK)- signal transducer and activator of transcription (STAT) pathway. Here, we show that this transforming event results from activating mutations either in JAK1, JAK3, or in both kinases. Transient and stable expression of JAK1 and/or JAK3 mutants showed that each mutant induces STAT activation and that their coexpression further increases this activation. The proliferation of growth factor-independent TS1 clones can be efficiently blocked by JAK inhibitors such as ruxolitinib or CMP6 in short-term assays. However, resistant clones occur upon long-term culture in the presence of inhibitors. Surprisingly, resistance to CMP6 was not caused by the acquisition of secondary mutations in the adenosine triphosphate-binding pocket of the JAK mutant. Indeed, cells that originally showed a JAK1-activating mutation became resistant to inhibitors by acquiring another activating mutation in JAK3, whereas cells that originally showed a JAK3-activating mutation became resistant to inhibitors by acquiring another activating mutation in JAK1. These observations underline the cooperation between JAK1 and JAK3 mutants in T-cell transformation and represent a new mechanism of acquisition of resistance against JAK inhibitors.

Impact of ruxolitinib on the natural history of primary myelofibrosis: a comparison of the DIPSS and the COMFORT-2 cohorts.

The international prognostic scoring system (IPSS) provides reliable risk assessment in patients with primary myelofibrosis (PMF). Recent clinical trials in PMF patients with intermediate-2 or high IPSS risk have shown a survival advantage of ruxolitinib over placebo (COMFORT-1) or best available therapy (COMFORT-2). Because crossover was allowed in these studies, we analyzed the cohort of ruxolitinib-naive patients used for developing the dynamic IPSS (DIPSS). By adopting ad hoc statistical analyses, we compared survival from diagnosis of 100 PMF patients receiving ruxolitinib within COMFORT-2 with that of 350 patients of the DIPSS study. Subjects were properly matched, and both left-truncation and right-censoring were accounted in order to compare higher IPSS risks exclusively. Patients receiving ruxolitinib had longer survival (5 years, 95% confidence interval [CI]: 2.9-7.8 vs 3.5 years, 95% CI: 3.0-3.9) with a hazard ratio of 0.61 (95% CI: 0.41-0.91; P = .0148). This observation suggests that ruxolitinib may modify the natural history of PMF.

Comparison of placebo and best available therapy for the treatment of myelofibrosis in the phase 3 COMFORT studies.

Prior to Janus kinase inhibitors, available therapies for myelofibrosis were generally supportive and did not improve survival. This analysis compares efficacy outcomes of patients with myelofibrosis in the control arms (placebo [n=154] and best available therapy [n=73]) from the two phase 3 COntrolled MyeloFibrosis study with ORal JAK inhibitor Treatment (COMFORT) studies. Spleen volume was assessed by magnetic resonance imaging/computed tomography at baseline and every 12 weeks through week 72; spleen length was assessed by palpation at each study visit. Health-related quality of life and symptoms were assessed using the European Organisation for Research and Treatment of Cancer Quality of Life Questionnaire-Core 30 Items at baseline and in weeks 4, 8, 12, 16 and 24 in COMFORT-I and in weeks 8, 16, 24 and 48 in COMFORT-II. The demographic and baseline characteristics were similar between the control arms of the two studies. One patient who received placebo and no patients who received best available therapy had a ≥35% reduction in spleen volume from baseline at week 24. At 24 weeks, neither placebo nor best available therapy had produced clinically meaningful changes in global quality of life or symptom scales. Non-hematologic adverse events were mostly grade 1/2; the most frequently reported adverse events in each group were abdominal pain, fatigue, peripheral edema and diarrhea. These data suggest that non-Janus kinase inhibitor therapies provide little improvement in splenomegaly, symptoms or quality of life as compared with placebo. Both COMFORT-I (NCT00952289) and COMFORT-II (NCT00934544) studies have been appropriately registered with clinicaltrials.gov.

Activation of the Janus kinase/signal transducer and activator of transcription pathway in multiple myeloma is not related to point mutations in kinase and pseudokinase domains of JAK1.

Abstract Considering the recent impact of tyrosine kinase inhibitors in the treatment of myeloproliferative disorders carrying a recurrent JAK2 mutation not identified in multiple myeloma (MM), this study aimed to search for mutations in kinase and pseudokinase domains of the JAK1 gene in an attempt to define any critical and recurring change that can be used as a therapeutic target. We obtained CD138 + purified cells from 27 bone marrow aspirates of untreated MM, four normal controls and four MM cell lines. After amplification of kinase and pseudokinase domains of JAK1 in cDNA samples, the fragments were automatically sequenced. Seventy-eight percent of MM cases showed at least one polymorphism, all being synonymous single nucleotide polymorphisms (SNPs), with allele frequencies consistent with previous studies in normal European, African American and Asian populations. The four cell lines also showed only synonymous SNPs. Mutations in the kinase and pseudokinase domains of the JAK1 gene do not seem to be important for activation of the Janus kinase/signal transducer and activator of transcription (JAK/STAT) pathway because we were not able to find any recurrent mutation in a case series of 27 patients and four MM cell lines.

Prognostic impact of JAK2V617F mutation in myelodysplatic syndromes: A matched case control study.

While in RARS-T, JAK2V617F mutation is common and associated with good prognosis, the clinical and prognostic impact of this mutation in other MDS is unknown. We collected data from 132 non-RARS-T MDS with known JAK2V617F mutation status. JAK2V617F mutation was significantly correlated with lower progression to AML (p<.0011) and better overall survival (OS, p=.011). OS difference persisted after matching on age, sex, IPSS and % marrow blast (p=.031). Thus, in MDS other than RARS-T, JAK2V617F mutation may be associated with favorable outcome.

Three-year efficacy, safety, and survival findings from COMFORT-II, a phase 3 study comparing ruxolitinib with best available therapy for myelofibrosis.

Ruxolitinib is a potent Janus kinase (JAK)1/JAK2 inhibitor that has demonstrated rapid reductions in splenomegaly and marked improvement in disease-related symptoms and quality of life in patients with myelofibrosis (MF). The present analysis reports the 3-year follow-up (median, 151 weeks) of the efficacy and safety of Controlled Myelofibrosis Study With Oral Janus-associated Kinase (JAK) Inhibitor Treatment-II (the COMFORT-II Trial), comparing ruxolitinib with the best available therapy (BAT) in 219 patients with intermediate-2 and high-risk MF. In the ruxolitinib arm, with continued therapy, spleen volume reductions of ≥35% by magnetic resonance imaging (equivalent to approximately 50% reduction by palpation) were sustained for at least 144 weeks, with the probability of 50% (95% confidence interval [CI], 36-63) among patients achieving such degree of response. At the time of this analysis, 45% of the patients randomized to ruxolitinib remained on treatment. Ruxolitinib continues to be well tolerated. Anemia and thrombocytopenia were the main toxicities, but they were generally manageable, improved over time, and rarely led to treatment discontinuation (1% and 3.6% of patients, respectively). No single nonhematologic adverse event led to definitive ruxolitinib discontinuation in more than 1 patient. Additionally, patients randomized to ruxolitinib showed longer overall survival than those randomized to BAT (hazard ratio, 0.48; 95% CI, 0.28-0.85; log-rank test, P = .009).

Efficacy and safety of pegylated-interferon α-2a in myelofibrosis: a study by the FIM and GEM French cooperative groups.

Myeloproliferative neoplasm-related myelofibrosis is associated with cytopenic or proliferative phases, splenomegaly and constitutional symptoms. Few effective treatments are available and small series suggested that interferon could be an option for myelofibrosis therapy. We performed a retrospective study of pegylated-interferon α-2a (Peg-IFNα-2a) therapy in myelofibrosis. Sixty-two patients treated with Peg-IFNα-2a at 17 French and Belgian centres were included. Responses were determined based on the criteria established by the International Working Group for Myelofibrosis Research and Treatment. Mean follow-up was 26 months. Sixteen of 25 anaemic patients (64%) (eight concomitantly receiving recombinant erythropoietin) achieved a complete response and transfusion-independence was obtained in 5/13 patients (38·5%). Constitutional symptoms resolved in 82% of patients. All five leucopenic patients normalized their leucocyte counts, whereas a normal platelet count was obtained in 5/8 thrombocytopenic patients. Splenomegaly was reduced in 46·5% of patients, and complete resolution of thrombocytosis and leucocytosis were observed in 82·8% and 68·8% of patients, respectively. Side effects (mostly haematological) were mainly of grade 1-2. The only factor independently associated with treatment failure was a spleen enlargement of more than 6 cm below the costal margin. In conclusion, Peg-IFNα-2a induced high response rates with acceptable toxicity in a large proportion of patients with primary and secondary myelofibrosis, especially in early phases.

Health-related quality of life and symptoms in patients with myelofibrosis treated with ruxolitinib versus best available therapy.

Patients with myelofibrosis (MF) have significant debilitating symptoms, physical disabilities, and poor health-related quality of life (HRQoL). Here, we report post-hoc analyses of the impact of ruxolitinib, a potent and selective JAK1 and JAK2 inhibitor, on disease-related symptoms and HRQoL in MF patients from the large phase 3 COMFORT-II study (N = 219). During the follow-up period of 48 weeks, HRQoL and MF-associated symptoms improved from baseline for ruxolitinib-treated patients but remained the same or worsened for best available therapy (BAT)-treated patients. Based on the European Organization for Research and Treatment of Cancer QoL Questionnaire core 30 items (EORTC QLQ-C30), treatment-induced differences in physical and role functioning, fatigue, and appetite loss significantly favoured ruxolitinib versus BAT from week 8 (P < 0·05) up to week 48 (P < 0·05). Ruxolitinib resulted in significantly higher response rates in global health status/QoL and Functional Assessment of Cancer Therapy-Lymphoma (FACT-Lym) summary scores versus BAT at most time points (P < 0·05). Significant improvements in the Lymphoma subscale (including symptoms of pain, fever, itching, fatigue, weight loss, loss of appetite, and other patient concerns), FACT-General, FACT-Lym trial outcome index, and FACT-Lym total were also observed with ruxolitinib versus BAT starting at week 8 and continuing thereafter. Overall, these data demonstrated that ruxolitinib improved HRQoL in MF patients and further support the use of ruxolitinib for the treatment of symptomatic MF.

Thrombopoietin receptor down-modulation by JAK2 V617F: restoration of receptor levels by inhibitors of pathologic JAK2 signaling and of proteasomes.

The constitutively active JAK2 V617F mutant is the major determinant of human myeloproliferative neoplasms (MPNs). We show that coexpression of murine JAK2 V617F and the murine thrombopoietin (Tpo) receptor (TpoR, c-MPL) in hematopoietic cell lines or heterozygous knock-in of JAK2 V617F in mice leads to down-modulation of TpoR levels. Enhanced TpoR ubiquitinylation, proteasomal degradation, reduced recycling, and maturation are induced by the constitutive JAK2 V617F activity. These effects can be prevented in cell lines by JAK2 and proteasome inhibitors. Restoration of TpoR levels by inhibitors could be detected in platelets from JAK2 inhibitor-treated myelofibrosis patients that express the JAK2 V617F mutant, and in platelets from JAK2 V617F knock-in mice that were treated in vivo with JAK2 or proteasome inhibitors. In addition, we show that Tpo can induce both proliferative and antiproliferative effects via TpoR at low and high JAK2 activation levels, respectively, or on expression of JAK2 V617F. The antiproliferative signaling and receptor down-modulation by JAK2 V617F were dependent on signaling via TpoR cytosolic tyrosine 626. We propose that selection against TpoR antiproliferative signaling occurs by TpoR down-modulation and that restoration of down-modulated TpoR levels could become a biomarker for the treatment of MPNs.

JAK inhibition with ruxolitinib versus best available therapy for myelofibrosis.

BACKGROUND: Treatment options for myelofibrosis are limited. We evaluated the efficacy and safety of ruxolitinib, a potent and selective Janus kinase (JAK) 1 and 2 inhibitor, as compared with the best available therapy, in patients with myelofibrosis. METHODS: We assigned 219 patients with intermediate-2 or high-risk primary myelofibrosis, post-polycythemia vera myelofibrosis, or post-essential thrombocythemia myelofibrosis to receive oral ruxolitinib or the best available therapy. The primary end point and key secondary end point of the study were the percentage of patients with at least a 35% reduction in spleen volume at week 48 and at week 24, respectively, as assessed with the use of magnetic resonance imaging or computed tomography. RESULTS: A total of 28% of the patients in the ruxolitinib group had at least a 35% reduction in spleen volume at week 48, as compared with 0% in the group receiving the best available therapy (P<0.001); the corresponding percentages at week 24 were 32% and 0% (P<0.001). At 48 weeks, the mean palpable spleen length had decreased by 56% with ruxolitinib but had increased by 4% with the best available therapy. The median duration of response with ruxolitinib was not reached, with 80% of patients still having a response at a median follow-up of 12 months. Patients in the ruxolitinib group had an improvement in overall quality-of-life measures and a reduction in symptoms associated with myelofibrosis. The most common hematologic abnormalities of grade 3 or higher in either group were thrombocytopenia and anemia, which were managed with a dose reduction, interruption of treatment, or transfusion. One patient in each group discontinued treatment owing to thrombocytopenia, and none discontinued owing to anemia. Nonhematologic adverse events were rare and mostly grade 1 or 2. Two cases of acute myeloid leukemia were reported with the best available therapy. CONCLUSIONS: Continuous ruxolitinib therapy, as compared with the best available therapy, was associated with marked and durable reductions in splenomegaly and disease-related symptoms, improvements in role functioning and quality of life, and modest toxic effects. An influence on overall survival has not yet been shown. (Funded by Novartis Pharmaceuticals; ClinicalTrials.gov number, NCT00934544.).

ETV6-PDGFRB and FIP1L1-PDGFRA stimulate human hematopoietic progenitor cell proliferation and differentiation into eosinophils: the role of nuclear factor-κB.

BACKGROUND: ETV6-PDGFRB (also called TEL-PDGFRB) and FIP1L1-PDGFRA are receptor-tyrosine kinase fusion genes that cause chronic myeloid malignancies associated with hypereosinophilia. The aim of this work was to gain insight into the mechanisms whereby fusion genes affect human hematopoietic cells and in particular the eosinophil lineage. DESIGN AND METHODS: We introduced ETV6-PDGFRB and FIP1L1-PDGFRA into human CD34(+) hematopoietic progenitor and stem cells isolated from umbilical cord blood. RESULTS: Cells transduced with these oncogenes formed hematopoietic colonies even in the absence of cytokines. Both oncogenes also stimulated the proliferation of cells in liquid culture and their differentiation into eosinophils. This model thus recapitulated key features of the myeloid neoplasms induced by ETV6-PDGFRB and FIP1L1-PDGFRA. We next showed that both fusion genes activated the transcription factors STAT1, STAT3, STAT5 and nuclear factor-κB. Phosphatidylinositol-3 kinase inhibition blocked nuclear factor-κB activation in transduced progenitor cells and patients' cells. Nuclear factor-κB was also activated in the human FIP1L1-PDGFRA-positive leukemia cell line EOL1, the proliferation of which was blocked by bortezomib and the IκB kinase inhibitor BMS-345541. A mutant IκB that prevents nuclear translocation of nuclear factor-κB inhibited cell growth and the expression of eosinophil markers, such as the interleukin-5 receptor and eosinophil peroxidase, in progenitors transduced with ETV6-PDGFRB. In addition, several potential regulators of this process, including HES6, MYC and FOXO3 were identified using expression microarrays. CONCLUSIONS: We show that human CD34(+) cells expressing PDGFR fusion oncogenes proliferate autonomously and differentiate towards the eosinophil lineage in a process that requires nuclear factor-κB. These results suggest new treatment possibilities for imatinib-resistant myeloid neoplasms associated with PDGFR mutations.