Outcome of adult acute myeloid leukemia patients with extramedullary disease and treatment with venetoclax/hypomethylating agents.

We evaluated response to VEN/HMA in 46 patients with acute myeloid leukemia (AML) characterized by extramedullary disease (EMD). Median age was 65 (range, 19-81) years. Patients had a median of two EMD sites (range, 1-5) and 35 (76%) patients had concurrent bone marrow involvement. Twenty (43%) patients had highrisk genetic features according to the European Leukemia Net 2022 classification. Twenty-nine (63%) were relapsed or refractory after intensive chemotherapy (CTX) including 13 (28%) with prior allogeneic hematopoietic cell transplantation (allo-HCT). Patients received a median of 2 cycles of VEN/HMA (range, 1-31). Twenty (43%) patients achieved complete remission (CR) or CR with incomplete hematological recovery (CRi) after VEN/HMA and five (11%) achieved a partial remission (PR). Six patients were subsequently consolidated with allo-HCT (CR/CRi, n=4; PR, n=2). Median follow-up was 49.1 months (95%-CI, 26.1 months - not reached) and median overall survival (OS) 6.4 months (95%-CI, 5.1-11 months). One-year and 2-years OS rates were 29.3% (95%-CI, 18.6-46.2%) and 12.3% (95%-CI, 5.5-27.6%), respectively. Age with a cut-off of 60 years had no impact on OS (P=0.90). Relapse occurred in 12 of 20 (60%) patients who achieved CR/CRi after VEN/HMA treatment. Of those, all except one succumbed to their disease. Six (30%) patients were in CR/CRi at last follow-up and 2 (10%) died in CR. In our cohort of patients with AML with EMD with high-risk features, treatment with VEN/HMA resulted in an encouraging ORR of 54% with a CR/CRi rate of 43.5%. However, VEN/HMA alone may not be effective in maintaining disease control.

Venetoclax-based therapy for relapsed or refractory acute myeloid leukaemia following intensive induction chemotherapy.

BACKGROUND: The treatment of relapsed or refractory (R/R) acute myeloid leukaemia (AML) remains challenging and outcomes extremely poor. The introduction of venetoclax has transformed the treatment of AML and emerging data suggest that venetoclax-based therapy may enforce salvage treatment. MATERIALS AND METHODS: In this nationwide Danish retrospective study, we analysed treatment outcomes of venetoclax-based salvage treatment for R/R AML between 2019 and 2022. Only venetoclax-naive patients who had previously received treatment with intensive chemotherapy therapy were included. RESULTS: The cohort consisted of 43 R/R patients with a median age of 57 years. Nine (20.9%) were primary refractory and 34 (79.1%) patients had relapsed, including 21 after previous allogeneic stem cell transplantation. The overall response rate was 76.2% including 61.9% with composite complete remission (CRc: CR + CRi). Among CRc-responders with information on measurable residual disease (MRD), 8/13 (61.5%) obtained an MRD-negativity response. The overall survival was 9.3 months for all patients with an estimated 1-year overall survival of 34%. For CRc-responders the median overall survival was 13.3 months, and the median relapse-free survival was 12.8 months. CONCLUSION: Venetoclax-based salvage treatment for R/R AML produced high response rates; however, for most patients the response was of limited duration. This study is limited by an observational design and prone to selection bias.

Effects of chemotherapy dose reductions in overweight patients with acute myeloid leukaemia: A Danish nationwide cohort study.

Overweight patients with cancer are frequently reduced in chemotherapy dose due to toxicity concerns, although previous studies have indicated that dose reduction (DR) of overweight patients results in comparable toxicity but may compromise overall survival (OS). Current evidence regarding DR in patients with acute myeloid leukaemia (AML) is limited. To investigate the association between DR and outcome among overweight patients with AML we analysed a Danish nationwide cohort of overweight adult AML patients treated with remission induction chemotherapy. Among 536 patients identified, 10.1% were categorized as DR defined as 95% or less of full body surface area (BSA)-based dose. Risk factors for DR were high body mass index (BMI) and BSA, therapy-related AML and favourable cytogenetics. No significant differences were observed for rates of complete remission (CR), 30- and 90-day mortality between DR and non-DR patients. Furthermore, DR did not affect median relapse-free survival (RFS) [DR, 14.5 (95% confidence interval, 9.0-41.7) months; non-DR, 15.0 (12.3-19.3)] with an adjusted difference in five-year restricted mean survival time (Δ5y-RMST) of 0.2 (-8.4 to 8.8) months nor median OS (DR, 17.0 [11.9 to 45.5] months; non-DR, 17.5 [14.8 to 20.5]) with an adjusted Δ5y-RMST of 0.8 (-5.7 to 7.3) months. In conclusion, we found no statistically significant association between DR and outcomes among overweight patients with AML. However, we acknowledge the limited sample size and encourage further studies in this important subject.

Temporal changes in survival among adult patients with acute myeloid leukaemia in the period 2000-2016: a Danish population-based study.

In the present study, we quantify the progress in overall survival (OS) during the period 2000-2016 among Danish patients with acute myeloid leukaemia (AML). This population-based study, including 3820 adult patients with AML, demonstrates a significantly improved OS over time with the 2-year age-standardised OS increasing from 22% in 2002 to 31% in 2016. The improvement in OS was exclusively seen in patients with AML aged ≥50 years, with absolute improvements in 2-year OS from 2002 to 2016 of ≥10% among patients aged 50-75 years and a small absolute increase in those aged >75 years.

The prognostic effect of smoking status on intensively treated acute myeloid leukaemia - A Danish nationwide cohort study.

With rising life expectancy, the importance of patient-related prognostic factors and how to integrate such data into clinical decision-making becomes increasingly important. The aim of this study was to evaluate the prognostic impact of smoking status in patients with acute myeloid leukaemia (AML) treated with intensive chemotherapy. We conducted a nationwide cohort study based on data obtained from the Danish National Leukaemia Registry (DNLR). The study comprised Danish patients aged 18-75 years, diagnosed with AML between 1 January 2000 and 31 December 2012. Medical records were reviewed and data on smoking status were collected. A total of 1040 patients (median age 59 years) were included, and 602 patients (58·9%) were categorised as ever-smokers and the remaining as never-smokers. Kaplan-Meier survival estimates revealed that ever-smokers had a significant shorter median overall survival (OS) at 17·2 months [95% CI (14·9;19·1)] compared to never-smokers at 24·5 months (95% CI [19·2;30·7]). Multivariate analysis revealed smoking status as a significant prognostic factor for inferior OS with a hazard ratio (HR) of 1·22 [95% CI (1·04;1·44)]. In conclusion, smoking status was found to be associated with inferior OS in intensively treated AML patients.

Potentials, challenges and future of chimeric antigen receptor T-cell therapy in non-Hodgkin lymphomas.

Background: Diffuse large B-cell lymphoma (DLBCL) is the most common lymphoma subtype. Disease progression or relapse following frontline chemoimmunotherapy, largely in the form of standard R-CHOP, occurs in 30-40% patients. Relapsed/refractory (R/R) DLBCL represents a major unmet medical need. In particular, patients with primary refractory disease or those whose lymphoma relapses after autologous stem cell transplantation have historically had poor outcomes.Material and methods: Chimeric antigen receptor T-cell (CART) therapy is a promising novel treatment with curative potential in this setting. CART is based on ex vivo genetic modification of autologous T-cells to express chimeric receptors targeting antigens highly expressed in tumors such as CD19 in DLBCL. After lymphocyte-depleting therapy, patients are infused with CARTs that expand in vivo and target CD19-positive lymphoma cells.Results: In initial phase I-II trials, investigators have demonstrated complete responses in 40-50% of patients with R/R DLBCL, resulting in durable remission approaching 3 years of follow-up in most of these patients without further treatment. The logistics of delivery are complex as cell products require timely long-distance transfer between hospitals and production facilities. The unique toxicity profile of CARTs, including the risk of fatal immunological and neurologic events, also requires specific hospital wide management approaches and education. The substantial direct and indirect costs of CART will limit access even in countries with well resourced health care systems.Conclusions: While only two products are commercially available at present, further approvals in coming years appear likely. Future directions include CARTs with reactivity to tumor antigens other than CD19 and products targeting multiple tumor antigens to overcome resistance. The availability of CART has altered the current treatment algorithm for R/R DLBCL, and indications will likely expand to earlier lines of therapy and other hematologic malignancies.

Socioeconomic Status and Overall Survival Among Patients With Hematological Malignant Neoplasms.

Importance: In recent years, there has been a focus on reducing the socioeconomic gap in survival for hematological malignant neoplasms. Understanding recent developments is important to develop further intervention to improve care. Objective: To investigate the temporal trend in associations of socioeconomic status (SES) with survival among 3 aggressive hematological malignant neoplasms: multiple myeloma (MM), acute myeloid leukemia (AML), and diffuse large B-cell lymphoma (DLBCL). Design, Setting, and Participants: This nationwide, population-based cohort study used retrospectively collected data from 3 clinical registries of patients diagnosed in Denmark between January 1, 2005, and December 31, 2020, with follow-up until December 31, 2021. Analyses were stratified by diagnosis year (2005-2009, 2010-2014, and 2015-2020). Participants were patients aged 25 to 65 years with hematological malignant neoplasms. Patients with missing data on education were excluded. Data were analyzed from October 14, 2022, to January 2, 2024. Exposure: Education was used as a proxy for SES and defined low- and high-SES groups based on the completion of tertiary education. Main Outcomes and Measures: The main outcome was overall survival (OS), analyzed using Kaplan-Meier (log rank) method and Cox proportional hazards regression adjusted for age, sex, performance status, comorbidities, and disease-specific prognostic indices. Two-year OS through time and survival difference were estimated using flexible parametric survival models. Results: A total of 5677 patients (median [IQR] age, 58 [51-62] years; 3177 [57.0%] male) were assessed, including 1826 patients with MM, 1236 patients with AML, and 2509 patients with DLBCL. The 2-year OS increased over time for patients with MM (78.8% [95% CI, 75.4%-82.3%] to 91.4% [95% CI, 89.3%-93.5%]), AML (42.2% [95% CI, 37.8%-47.1%] to 52.7% [95% CI, 48.0%-57.9%]), and DLBCL (80.1% [95% CI, 77.4%-82.8%] to 88.1% [95% CI, 86.0%-90.3%]). For MM and DLBCL, no association of SES with survival was observed after adjustment (MM: hazard ratio [HR], 0.99 [95% CI, 0.85-1.15]; DLBCL: HR, 1.08 [95% CI, 0.91-1.29]). For AML, a negative association was observed between low SES and survival (HR, 1.49 [95% CI, 1.25-1.76]), but the association was attenuated in recent years. The difference in hazard for patients with low SES and AML was observed in the first 2 years after diagnosis. Conclusions and Relevance: These findings suggest that survival has improved among patients with these hematological malignant neoplasms. While patients with MM and DLBCL had increased survival in all groups, disparities were observed in AML outcomes, primarily in the first years after diagnosis. These results suggest that differences originate in factors specific to AML.

Metformin use and risk of myeloproliferative neoplasms: a Danish population-based case-control study.

ABSTRACT: Previous studies have suggested that metformin has beneficial effects beyond its glucose-lowering properties, particularly in terms of its potential as an antineoplastic and cancer-preventive agent. In this study, we aimed to investigate the association between metformin use and the risk of myeloproliferative neoplasms (MPN). We conducted a population-based case-control study using Danish registers. Cases with MPN diagnosed between 2010 and 2018 were identified, and metformin use before the MPN diagnosis was ascertained. We compared metformin use among cases with MPN and an age- and sex-matched control group from the Danish general population to estimate age- and sex-adjusted odds ratios (ORs) and fully adjusted ORs (aORs) for the association between metformin use and risk of MPN. The study population included 3816 cases and 19 080 controls. Overall, 7.0% of cases and 8.2% of controls were categorized as ever-users of metformin, resulting in an OR for MPN of 0.84 (95% confidence interval [CI], 0.73-0.96) and an aOR of 0.70 (95% CI, 0.61-0.81). Long-term metformin use (≥5 years) was more infrequent and comprised 1.1% of cases and 2.0% of controls, resulting in an OR of 0.57 (95% CI, 0.42-0.79) and an aOR of 0.45 (95% CI, 0.33-0.63). A dose-response relationship was observed when cumulative duration of treatment was analyzed, and this was consistent in stratified analyses of sex, age, and MPN subtypes. In conclusion, metformin use was associated with significantly lower odds of an MPN diagnosis, indicating its potential cancer-preventive effect. Given the retrospective design, causality cannot be inferred.

Temporal changes in survival among adult patients with acute lymphoblastic leukaemia diagnosed in the period 1998-2020 - A Danish nationwide population-based cohort study.

BACKGROUND: Previous studies have shown continuous improved overall survival (OS) up to 2015 for young adults with acute lymphoblastic leukaemia (ALL). However, recently several important advances have been made justifying a more contemporary analysis of outcomes in adult with ALL. METHODS: In this nationwide population-based cohort study, we included patients above 18 years of age diagnosed with ALL between January 1, 1998, and December 31, 2020. Patients were followed until December 31, 2022. By employing flexible parametric survival models, we quantified progress in OS using the key endpoint of 2-year age standardized OS for all patients and clinical subgroups of interest. FINDINGS: This study includes 657 patients and demonstrates a significant improvement in OS over time with the 2-year age standardized OS increasing from 36·4 % (95 % CI, 27·0-45·8 %) for patients diagnosed in 1998 to 68·6 % (95 % CI, 60·2-76·9)for patients diagnosed in 2020, corresponding to an absolute increase in 2-year OS of 32·2 % points (95 % CI, 19·1-45·2). Stratified analysis revealed improvements for both Philadelphia chromosome positive and negative ALL, across cytogenetic risk groups, and for B- and T-cell ALL, whereas the latter did not reach statistical significance. Improvements were seen across all ages; however, most pronounced for Philadelphia chromosome positive ALL and patients below 60 years of age. INTERPRETATION: These results show a universal and continuous improvement in the treatment of adult ALL. Currently, novel treatment combination and advances in cellular therapy occur rapidly, and we expect even further improvements in the years to come. FUNDING: Northern Region of Denmark.

Venetoclax-based low intensity therapy in molecular failure of NPM1-mutated AML.

ABSTRACT: Molecular failure in NPM1-mutated acute myeloid leukemia (AML) inevitably progresses to frank relapse if untreated. Recently published small case series show that venetoclax combined with low-dose cytarabine or azacitidine can reduce or eliminate measurable residual disease (MRD). Here, we report on an international multicenter cohort of 79 patients treated for molecular failure with venetoclax combinations and report an overall molecular response (≥1-log reduction in MRD) in 66 patients (84%) and MRD negativity in 56 (71%). Eighteen of 79 patients (23%) required hospitalization, and no deaths were reported during treatment. Forty-one patients were bridged to allogeneic transplant with no further therapy, and 25 of 41 were MRD negative assessed by reverse transcription quantitative polymerase chain reaction before transplant. Overall survival (OS) for the whole cohort at 2 years was 67%, event-free survival (EFS) was 45%, and in responding patients, there was no difference in survival in those who received a transplant using time-dependent analysis. Presence of FLT3-ITD mutation was associated with a lower response rate (64 vs 91%; P < .01), worse OS (hazard ratio [HR], 2.50; 95% confidence interval [CI], 1.06-5.86; P = .036), and EFS (HR, 1.87; 95% CI, 1.06-3.28; P = .03). Eighteen of 35 patients who did not undergo transplant became MRD negative and stopped treatment after a median of 10 months, with 2-year molecular relapse free survival of 62% from the end of treatment. Venetoclax-based low intensive chemotherapy is a potentially effective treatment for molecular relapse in NPM1-mutated AML, either as a bridge to transplant or as definitive therapy.

An Aggressive Course of Transformed Splenic Diffuse Red Pulp Small B-Cell Lymphoma With Novel Somatic Loss-of-Function Mutation in RB1.

Splenic diffuse red pulp small B-cell lymphoma (SDRPL) is an extremely rare B-cell lymphoma. The disease is typically indolent and treatment with splenectomy usually results in durable remissions. Here, we present a case of an extremely aggressive course of SDRPL with transformation to diffuse large B-cell lymphoma and multiple relapses immediately following cessation of immunochemotherapy. We provide results from whole-exome sequencing from debut of SDRPL and from following transformed stages and identified a novel somatic mutation in RB1 as the possible driver of this aggressive disease, which has not been reported earlier in SDRPL.

Use of statins and risk of myeloproliferative neoplasms: a Danish nationwide case-control study.

Previous studies have indicated a possible cancer-protective effect of statins in solid cancers; however, this has never been investigated in myeloproliferative neoplasms (MPNs). We aimed to investigate the association between statin use and the risk of MPNs in a nested nationwide case-control study, using Danish national population registries. Information on statin use was obtained from the Danish National Prescription Registry, and patients diagnosed with MPNs between 2010 and 2018 were identified from the Danish National Chronic Myeloid Neoplasia Registry. The association between statin use and MPNs was estimated using age- and sex-adjusted odds ratios (ORs) and fully adjusted ORs (aORs), adjusting for prespecified confounders. The study population included 3816 cases with MPNs and 19 080 population controls (5:1) matched for age and sex using incidence density sampling. Overall, 34.9% of the cases and 33.5% of the controls ever used statins, resulting in an OR for MPN of 1.07 (95% confidence interval [CI], 0.99-1.16) and an aOR of 0.87 (95% CI, 0.80-0.96), respectively. 17.2% were categorized as long-term users (≥5 years) among the cases compared with 19.0% among controls, yielding an OR for MPN of 0.90 (95% CI, 0.81-1.00) and an aOR of 0.72 (95% CI, 0.64-0.81). Analysis of the effect of the cumulative duration of statin use revealed a dose-dependent response, and the association was consistent for sex, age, and MPN subgroups and across different statin types. Statin users were associated with significantly lower odds of being diagnosed with an MPN, indicating a possible cancer-preventive effect of statins. The retrospective of this study precludes causal inferences.

Population receptive fields of human primary visual cortex organised as DC-balanced bandpass filters.

The response to visual stimulation of population receptive fields (pRF) in the human visual cortex has been modelled with a Difference of Gaussians model, yet many aspects of their organisation remain poorly understood. Here, we examined the mathematical basis and signal-processing properties of this model and argue that the DC-balanced Difference of Gaussians (DoG) holds a number of advantages over a DC-biased DoG. Through functional magnetic resonance imaging (fMRI) pRF mapping, we compared performance of DC-balanced and DC-biased models in human primary visual cortex and found that when model complexity is taken into account, the DC-balanced model is preferred. Finally, we present evidence indicating that the BOLD signal DC offset contains information related to the processing of visual stimuli. Taken together, the results indicate that V1 pRFs are at least frequently organised in the exact constellation that allows them to function as bandpass filters, which makes the separation of stimulus contrast and luminance possible. We further speculate that if the DoG models stimulus contrast, the DC offset may reflect stimulus luminance. These findings suggest that it may be possible to separate contrast and luminance processing in fMRI experiments and this could lead to new insights on the haemodynamic response.

[Myelodysplastic syndrome and acut leukaemia].

Myelodysplastic syndrome and acute myeloid leukaemia are neoplastic diseases caused by genetic alterations of the haematopoietic stem cells. Advances in sequencing techniques have led to a profound understanding of the underlying pathogeneses. Somatic mutations and chromosomal aberrations can be found in > 90% of the cases. The improved understanding of the pathogeneses has translated into better risk stratification and drug development. Somatic mutations may affect targetable protein-kinases or neomorphic enzymes, and new treatment options for specific molecular subgroups of patients are in the pipeline.

[Fever, loss of vision and acute promyelocytic leukemia at the pandemic ward].

This is a case report of a 68-year-old female referred to the SARS-CoV-2 ward with one week of intermittent fever and three days of progressive loss of vision. Laboratory work-up revealed severe coagulopathy, thrombocytopenia and hyperleukocytosis. MRI showed multiple ischaemic cortical lesions. Acute treatment with all-trans retinoic acid and cytoreduction was started and coagulation parameters corrected. Patients referred to pandemic wards must undergo stringent examination and be referred for further evaluation irrespective of suspected severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus-2 infection.

Effect of body weight support on muscle activation during walking on a lower body positive pressure treadmill.

Following lower limb injury, some patients are not able to walk at full weight bearing and may require body weight support for ambulation during the early stages of rehabilitation. The aim of the present study was to investigate how various degrees of reduced effective body weight in a Lower Body Positive Pressure Treadmill (LBPPT), affects muscle activation levels during walking. Twelve healthy participants were instructed to walk at 2.5 km/h and 3.6 km/h on a LBPPT that provided a reduced effective body weight equivalent to 100%, 80%, 60%, 40%, and 20% of their individual body mass. Electromyography data were recorded during 20 gait cycles, from seven lower limb muscles, and segmented into a mean envelope by computing root mean square values. A two-way repeated measures ANOVA was used to test for differences in the highest root mean square value obtained, with walking speed and fractional reduction in effective body weight as factors. Significant decreases in EMG amplitude were identified in the following muscles as a result of reduced effective body weight: Vastus Medialis, Vastus Lateralis, Soleus, Gastrocnemius Medial and Lateral head (p ≤ 0.05). For Tibialis Anterior, significant reductions in EMG amplitude were only observed when effective body weight was reduced to 40% or less at a walking speed of 2.5 km/h (p ≤ 0.05). The EMG amplitude for Tibialis Anterior at 3.6 km/h and Biceps Femoris at both speeds remained unaffected at all fractional reductions (p ≥ 0.05). These findings suggests that the muscles of the lower limb respond differently to the body weight support provided by the LBPPT during walking, with the extensor muscles of the knee and ankle displaying decreased muscle activation, and the Tibialis Anterior and Biceps Femoris displaying minimal to no changes in muscle activation.

Renal effects of long-term ciclosporin A treatment in a large animal model.

BACKGROUND: Most experimental studies of chronic ciclosporin A (CsA) nephrotoxicity have been performed in rodents; however, the pig possesses several advantages. The aim of this study was to investigate renal functional and structural changes during CsA treatment with 20 mg/kg/day for 6 months in a pig model. METHODS: Gottingen minipigs were randomized to oral CsA treatment or as controls. At 0, 5, 10, 15, 20 and 25 weeks body weight, blood pressure, serum creatinine, and whole blood CsA levels were measured. Magnetic resonance imaging was used to estimate relative glomerular filtration rate (rGFR), renal blood flow (RBF), kidney length and volume. Renal vascular resistance (RVR) was calculated. Kidney tissue biopsies were taken and volume fraction of cortical interstitial tissue estimated by a stereology-based method. RESULTS: CsA induced significant increases in serum creatinine, blood pressure, RVR, and a significant decrease in RBF. Furthermore, renal volume increased significantly. This finding was inversely related to the decrease in RBF and initially followed by an increase in rGFR, which then decreased. No significant histopathological kidney changes were observed. CONCLUSION: CsA treatment with 20 mg/kg/day for 6 months causes increased serum creatinine, blood pressure, RVR, and renal volume along with a decrease in RBF in accordance with data obtained in humans. The initial temporal changes in renal volume and function during CsA administration have similarities to the functional changes seen in early diabetes.