ABSTRACT
Background: Non-Hodgkin's lymphomas are the eighth-most prevalent malignancy in females and the eleventh in males. No research has been conducted comparing dexamethasone, cytarabine cisplatin (DHAP) vs. ifosfamide, carboplatin, etoposide (ICE) as salvage chemotherapy regimens for relapsed or refractory lymphomas in Pakistan. This study aims to compare the response of ICE vs. DHAP as salvage chemotherapy in patients with relapsed/refractory lymphomas. Methods: A prospective follow-up study was conducted at the tertiary care hospital in Karachi, Pakistan, from 2019 to 2020. A total of 58 lymphoma patients after first-line chemotherapy were included in the study. The treatment response was evaluated after two cycles of salvage chemotherapy using WHO assessment criteria, and Cox regression was used to determine the hazard ratios considering the P value ≤0.05 significant. Results: Of 58 patients, 19 (32.8%) patients achieved complete response (CR), and 8 (13.8%) patients achieved partial response (PR), with an overall response rate of overall response rate of 46.6%. In the ICE group, the response was assessed in 19 patients. Overall response was 42.1%, CR was 31.6% and PR was 10.5%. In the DHAP group, response was evaluated in 39 patients, the overall response rate was 48.7%, CR was 33.3% and PR was 15.4%. The hazard ratio for survival in patients with relapsed/refractory lymphomas who received DHAP was 1.40 times (95% CI: 1.27-3.63, P=0.001) compared to patients who received ICE as salvage chemotherapy. Conclusion: DHAP seems to have a marginally better overall response rate than the ICE regimen in patients with refractory or relapsed lymphoma. However, the toxicity profile of patients in both groups was similar.
ABSTRACT
We report a case of vaccine-induced immune thrombotic thrombocytopenia (VITT) in a 73-year-old gentleman who presented with pulmonary embolism and thrombocytopenia, two weeks after receiving inactivated COVID-19 vaccine. He responded well to nonheparin anticoagulation with complete resolution of symptoms and platelet count.
Subject(s)
COVID-19 , Purpura, Thrombocytopenic, Idiopathic , Thrombocytopenia , Vaccines , Aged , COVID-19/prevention & control , COVID-19 Vaccines/adverse effects , Humans , Male , SARS-CoV-2 , Thrombocytopenia/chemically induced , Vaccines/adverse effectsABSTRACT
In Pakistan 76.4% of all NHLs to be diagnosed as DLBCLs. The survival of R-CHOP is better compared to the DA-REPOCH treatment regimen. A prospective follow-up study was conducted with 113 patients to study the outcomes of treatment. Multivariable cox-proportional hazard model was used to estimate the hazard ratios in patients receiving these treatment regimens considering p-value ≤0.05 significant. The survival rate among double/triple expressor lymphoma patients received R-DA-EPOCH was 82.8%, and 83.3% received R-CHOP. For double/triple expressor lymphoma patients received R-DA-EPOCH. The findings of our study demonstrated that the survival rate in both R-CHOP and R-DA-EPOCH is mostly similar.
ABSTRACT
HLH is a progressive syndrome of unchecked immune activation and tissue damage. If left untreated, patients with HLH survive for only a few months, due to progressive multi-organ failure. Prompt initiation of treatment for HLH is essential for the survival of affected patients. Several conditions are responsible for triggering HLH in clinically stable patients who respond to treatment of the underlying condition alone. These conditions include infection, rheumatological diseases and lymphoid malignancies. We report a rare case of primary HLH in a 32-year-old female who presented with fever, abdominal pain, pancytopenia and splenomegaly with the triggering factor being Dengue infection.
ABSTRACT
The triad of weak/absent CD34, negative HLA-DR expression, and positivity to CD117 is pathognomonic for the diagnosis of acute promyelocytic leukemia. However, in rare cases, strong positivity to HLD-DR and CD34 may be noted.