The application of Gadopentate-Dimeneglumin has no impact on progression free and overall survival as well as renal function in patients with monoclonal plasma cell disorders if general precautions are taken.

OBJECTIVES: The current analysis investigated the prognostic significance of gadopentetate dimeglumine on survival and renal function in patients with monoclonal plasma cell disorders. METHODS: In this study 263 patients who had received gadopentetate dimeglumine within a prospective trial investigating dynamic contrast-enhanced magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) were compared with 335 patients who had undergone routine, unenhanced MRI. RESULTS: We found no significant prognostic impact of the application of contrast agent on progression-free survival in patients with either monoclonal gammopathy of undetermined significance, smouldering or symptomatic myeloma and no significant prognostic impact on overall survival in patients with symptomatic myeloma. Since renal impairment is a frequent complication of myeloma, and decreased renal function is associated with a higher risk of complications in patients receiving contrast agents, we evaluated the impact of contrast agent on renal function after 1 year. In the present analysis the only significant adverse impact on kidney function occurred in symptomatic myeloma patients who already had impaired renal parameters at baseline. Here, the renal function did not recover during therapy, whereas it did so in patients with normal or only slightly impaired renal function. CONCLUSION: If general recommendations are adhered to, gadopentetate dimeglumine can be safely applied in patients with monoclonal plasma cell disease.

Successful autologous peripheral blood stem cell transplantation in a Jehovah's Witness with multiple myeloma: review of literature and recommendations for high-dose chemotherapy without support of allogeneic blood products.

We present a case report of a successful high-dose melphalan therapy and autologous stem cell transplantation without the use of allogeneic blood product support in a 70-year-old patient suffering from multiple myeloma. Based on the experience in this case and thorough evaluation of the literature, we consider pre-transplant Hb level of 11-12 g/dl, platelet count higher than 70/nl, good WHO performance status of two and lower and informed consent as important eligibility criteria. During cytopenia recommended supportive measures include growth factor support with erythropoietin and G-CSF, p.o. iron treatment as well as prophylactic use of anti-fibrinloytic agents. Furthermore we discuss additional options that might be considered depending on the individual factors as e.g. pre-transplant collection and cryoconservation of autologous platelet concentrates. Moreover, an analysis of socio-economic issues regarding this procedure is presented. We conclude that allogeneic blood product free transplantation is a feasible procedure that can be offered to the patients belonging to distinct religious groups refusing allogeneic blood products as Jehovás Witnesses and patients presenting other contraindications for transfusions.

Angiogenesis in hematologic malignancies.

Angiogenesis is defined as the formation of new capillaries from preexisting blood vessels and plays an important role in the progression of solid tumors. Recently a similar relationship has been described in several hematologic malignancies. Expression of the angiogenic peptides vascular endothelial growth factor (VEGF) and basic fibroblast growth factor correlates with clinical characteristics in leukemia and non-Hodgkin's-lymphoma and the serum/plasma concentrations serve as predictors of poor prognosis. Increased bone marrow microvessels in multiple myeloma (MM) are correlated with decreased overall survival. Thalidomide which has antiangiogenic effects and direct cytotoxic effects was found to be effective in MM, myelodysplastic syndrome and acute myeloid leukemia (AML). Preliminary data indicate activity of VEGF-tyrosine kinase inhibitors in AML. Clinical research is now aimed at testing antiangiogenic treatment strategies in several hematologic neoplasms as well as identifying the best candidate patients for specific approaches.

Antiangiogenic therapy in hematologic malignancies.

Angiogenesis is defined as the formation of new capillaries from prexisting blood vessels and plays an important role in the progression of solid tumors and hematologic malignancies. Markers of angiogenesis correlate with clinical characteristics in leukemia and non-Hodgkin's-lymphoma, serving as predictors of poor prognosis. Antiangiogenic effects of chemotherapeutics as well as of novel drugs such as farnesyltransferase inhibitors and tyrosine kinase inhibitors such as Gleevec might contribute to their therapeutic potential. Thalidomide which has antiangiogenic effects and direct cytotoxic effects was found to be effective in multiple myeloma and is considered as an established treatment modality for patients with refractory or relapsed multiple myeloma. Thalidomide has a significant therapeutic effect in myelodysplastic syndrome (MDS) by improving cytopenia and achieving independence of transfusion therapy in a subset of patients. Preliminary data indicate activity of specific VEGF receptor tyrosine kinase (RTK) inhibitors in multiple myeloma (MM) and acute myeloid leukemia (AML). The positive correlation between increased levels of angiogenic cytokines and clinical response to VEGF-RTK inhibitors and thalidomide indicates the relevance of detecting angiogenesis markers to identify best candidate patients for specific approaches. Including antiangiogenic drugs into treatment protocols for hematologic malignancies is an important task for future clinical studies.

Bisphosphonate treatment and renal function in 201 myeloma patients undergoing stem cell transplantation.

Administration of bisphosphonates (BPs) is an essential supportive treatment for reducing bone-related complications in cancer. Deterioration of renal function is one possible side effect of BPs as well as a clinical feature in multiple myeloma. It has been suggested that the nephrotoxicity of different BPs may differ. We performed a retrospective evaluation of renal function in 201 myeloma patients undergoing myeloablative chemotherapy and treatment with ibandronate (I), pamidronate (P), or zoledronate (Z) for up to 36 months. There was no significant deterioration in mean creatinine clearance (CreaCl) in the entire cohort. The percentage of patients experiencing a decrease in CreaCl ≥ 25 % from baseline was 33.0 % in the I group, 44.4 % in the P group and 21.4 % in the Z group, respectively. CreaCl at baseline (P < 0.0001), relapse/progression (P = 0.0019), proteinuria at baseline (P = 0.039), age (P = 0.0031) were identified as significant independent predictors of decrease in renal function. In both descriptive multivariant analyses, we found no evidence of an advantage of any particular BP with respect to effects on renal function. In line with these data, in a subgroup of 90 patients with a baseline CreaCl <90 ml/min, no significant difference was evident between the cohorts of patients treated with different BPs. Regular treatment with the BPs I, P and Z in myeloma patients undergoing intensive chemotherapy appear to be equally safe for up to 3 years in terms of nephrotoxicity.

Clinical evidence for immunomodulation induced by high-dose melphalan and autologous blood stem cell transplantation as cause for complete clinical remission of multiple myeloma-associated cryoglobulin-vasculitis.

We present a case report of a patient with cryoglobulin-vasculitis caused by multiple myeloma in Durie/Salmon stage I refractory to conventional therapy modalities treated with high-dose chemotherapy followed by autologous blood stem cell transplantation. While clinical symptoms of vasculitis disappeared, elevated cryoglobulin levels persisted. Therefore we conclude that the relief of symptoms was caused by an immunomodulation induced by the autologous stem cell transplantation.

Thalidomide in multiple myeloma.

Thalidomide (Thal) has antiangiogenic and immunomodulatory activity. Clinical research provided clear evidence that Thal is one of the most active drugs for the treatment of multiple myeloma leading to decrease of monoclonal protein of at least 50 % in 30 % of patients with relapsed or refractory multiple myeloma. Randomized trials based on a large body of evidence from phase II trials determined that Thal significantly increases total response rate in combination regimens (dexamethasone [Dex] and or chemotherapy) for relapsed as well as newly diagnosed patients. Thal also decreases time to response in combination therapy approaches. Thal has therefore been recognized by leading organizations as part of the treatment concept for patients with relapsed or refractory disease. Strict guidelines apply for the treatment and monitoring of Thal therapy to prevent the teratogenic effects of Thal and to monitor and prevent other potential adverse events as neuropathy and thrombosis. Additional randomized studies will now define the status of Thal for newly diagnosed patients and will be the basis for the approval in Europe and other countries world wide.

Angiogenesis in hematologic malignancies.

Angiogenesis, defined as the blood vessel generation from preexisting blood vessels, was found to play an important role in the progression of solid tumors. In addition, bone marrow-derived endothelial precursor cells may contribute to tumor angiogenesis. Recently angiogenesis induction was described in several hematologic neoplasms as leukemia, lymphoma, myelodysplastic syndrome and multiple myeloma (MM). Clinical angiogenesis research also termed as angiodiagnosis has established the prognostic relevance of markers of angiogenesis e.g., microvessel density and circulating levels of angiogenic peptides. Development of antiangiogenic treatment for hematologic neoplasms has recently been sparked by the success of Thalidomide (Thal) which has antiangiogenic properties in MM. Antiangiogenic treatment strategies are now being tested in clinical trials on several types of hematologic neoplasms.

Salvage therapy for multiple myeloma with thalidomide and CED chemotherapy.

The feasibility and efficacy of a combination of thalidomide, cyclophosphamide, etoposide, and dexamethasone were studied in 56 patients with poor-prognosis multiple myeloma. Of 50 patients evaluable for response, 4% achieved complete response (CR), 64% partial response (PR), 18% minimal response (MR), 6% stable disease (SD), and 8% progressive disease (PD), resulting in an objective response rate (> or = MR) of 86.0% (76.7% overall objective response rate in intent-to-treat analysis; n = 56). Subsequent to successful remission induction, 18 patients received autologous or allogeneic stem cell transplantation. The median progression-free survival in all patients was 16 months. The median overall survival time could not be calculated, since the last observed death occurred after 16 months of follow-up (median follow-up of 14 months) with a corresponding estimated survival probability of 55%. Severe adverse effects (World Health Organization III/IV) included infectious complications (35.7%) and cardiovascular events (7.1%). The data suggest that Thal improves antitumor activity of salvage chemotherapy regimens in poor-prognosis multiple myeloma.

[Functional magnetic resonance tomography in the diagnosis and therapy monitoring in multiple myeloma]. / Funktionelle Magnetresonanztomographie in Diagnostik und Therapiemonitoring beim Multiplen Myelom.

AIM OF THE STUDY: Investigation of the quantitative microcirculation parameters amplitude A and exchange rate constant k21 determined by contrast-enhanced dynamic magnetic resonance imaging (d-MRI) in multiple myeloma (MM). METHODS: d-MRT of lumbar spine and right spina iliaca superior posterior of 16 controls (ctr) and 35 patients with active MM. Generation of colour-coded images of microcirculation parameters superimposed onto static MRI images. RESULTS: Amplitude A and k21 parameters were significantly increased in patients with MM and down modulated by therapy in 7 of 8 MM cases in a follow-up investigation [p < 0.01; median Actr = 0.2 (0.09-0.4); median AMM = 0.93 (0.2-1.52); median k21ctr = 0.09 min-1 (0.03-0.9); median k21MM = 4.57 min-1 (0.21-23.8)]. Thirteen patients revealed a "diffuse" and 22 a "focal" pattern of distribution of microcirculation parameters. Bone marrow biopsies in 8 cases revealed an correlation between bone marrow plasma cell infiltration and increased microcirculation parameters. CONCLUSION: Identification of microcirculation changes by d-MRI is a novel imaging technique for the detection and monitoring of MM bone lesions.

Bone marrow microcirculation analysis in multiple myeloma by contrast-enhanced dynamic magnetic resonance imaging.

The aim of our study was to investigate the quantitative microcirculation parameters amplitude A (hypothetical intravascular volume) and exchange rate constant k(21) (hypothetical vascular permeability) by contrast-enhanced dynamic magnetic resonance imaging (dMRI) as markers of angiogenesis in multiple myeloma (MM). Therefore lumbar spine and spina iliaca superior posterior of 16 normal controls and 41 patients with active MM were assessed using a dMRI protocol with a pump controlled bolus infusion of Gadolinium-DTPA. Pharmacokinetic parameters, amplitude A and exchange rate constant k(21) were calculated according to a 2-compartment model. Color-coded parameter images were generated from pharmacokinetic data analysis and superimposed onto the conventional MR images. Amplitude A and k(21) parameters were significantly increased in patients with MM compared with controls (p = 0.001; median A(ctr), 0.2 [range, 0.09-0.4]; median A(MM), 0.93 [range, 0.2-2.2]; median k(21ctr), 0.09 min(-1) [range, 0.03-0.9]; median k(21MM), 4.58 [range, 0.22-23.8]). Within the group of MM patients the pattern of color-coded parameter images were found to be either of "diffuse" (n = 13, 31%) or "focal" (n = 28, 69%) type of distribution of microcirculation. Comparison of amplitude A in patients with "focal" vs. "diffuse" pattern of the pharmacokinetic maps revealed a significant increase in the median of amplitude A in the "focal" group. Amplitude A values allowed a classification of patients according to severe osteolytic bone involvement (p = 0.023) with the best cutoff value of 0.7 for amplitude A. Downmodulation of amplitude A was observed in a MM patient treated with standard VAD chemotherapy. Our data demonstrate that dMRI is a novel imaging technique for the detection and monitoring of MM bone lesions. It provides independent evidence for angiogenesis in MM.