Pregnancy complications in acquired thrombotic thrombocytopenic purpura: a case-control study.

BACKGROUND: Pregnant women with a history of acquired thrombotic thrombocytopenic purpura (TTP) are considered at risk for disease recurrence and might be at risk for miscarriage, similar to other autoimmune disorders. However, the exact entity of these risks and their causes are unknown. The aim of this study was to evaluate risk factors associated with adverse pregnancy outcome, in terms of both gravidic TTP and miscarriage, in women affected by previous acquired TTP. METHODS: We conducted a nested case-control study in women with a history of acquired TTP enrolled in the Milan TTP registry from 1994 to October 2012, with strict inclusion criteria to reduce referral and selection bias. RESULTS: Fifteen out of 254 women with acquired TTP were included, namely four cases with gravidic TTP, five with miscarriage, and six controls with uncomplicated pregnancy. In the cases, ADAMTS13 activity levels in the first trimester were moderately-to-severely reduced (median levels <3% in gravidic TTP and median levels 20% [range 14-40%] in the women with miscarriage) and anti-ADAMTS13 antibodies were invariably present, while in the control group ADAMTS13 activity levels were normal (median 90%, range 40-129%), with absence of detectable anti-ADAMTS13 antibodies. Reduced levels of ADAMTS13 activity (<25%) in the first trimester were associated with an over 2.9-fold increased risk for gravidic TTP and with an over 1.2-fold increased risk for miscarriage (lower boundary of the confidence interval of the odds ratio). In addition, the presence of anti-ADAMTS13 antibodies during pregnancy was associated with an over 6.6-fold increased risk for gravidic TTP and with an over 4.1-fold increased risk for miscarriage. CONCLUSIONS: ADAMTS13 activity evaluation and detection of anti-ADAMTS13 antibody could help to predict the risk of complications in pregnant women with a history of acquired TTP.

High-dose cytarabine in induction treatment improves the outcome of adult patients younger than age 46 years with acute myeloid leukemia: results of the EORTC-GIMEMA AML-12 trial.

PURPOSE: Cytarabine plays a pivotal role in the treatment of patients with acute myeloid leukemia (AML). Most centers use 7 to 10 days of cytarabine at a daily dose of 100 to 200 mg/m(2) for remission induction. Consensus has not been reached on the benefit of higher dosages of cytarabine. PATIENTS AND METHODS: The European Organisation for Research and Treatment of Cancer (EORTC) and Gruppo Italiano Malattie Ematologiche dell' Adulto (GIMEMA) Leukemia Groups conducted a randomized trial (AML-12; Combination Chemotherapy, Stem Cell Transplant and Interleukin-2 in Treating Patients With Acute Myeloid Leukemia) in 1,942 newly diagnosed patients with AML, age 15 to 60 years, comparing remission induction treatment containing daunorubicin, etoposide, and either standard-dose (SD) cytarabine (100 mg/m(2) per day by continuous infusion for 10 days) or high-dose (HD) cytarabine (3,000 mg/m(2) every 12 hours by 3-hour infusion on days 1, 3, 5, and 7). Patients in complete remission (CR) received a single consolidation cycle containing daunorubicin and intermediate-dose cytarabine (500 mg/m(2) every 12 hours for 6 days). Subsequently, a stem-cell transplantation was planned. The primary end point was survival. RESULTS: At a median follow-up of 6 years, overall survival was 38.7% for patients randomly assigned to SD cytarabine and 42.5% for those randomly assigned to HD cytarabine (log-rank test P = .06; multivariable analysis P = .009). For patients younger than age 46 years, survival was 43.3% and 51.9%, respectively (P = .009; multivariable analysis P = .003), and for patients age 46 to 60 years, survival was 33.9% and 32.9%, respectively (P = .91). CR rates were 72.0% and 78.7%, respectively (P < .001) and were 75.6% and 82.4% for patients younger than age 46 years (P = .01) and 68.3% and 74.8% for patients age 46 years and older (P = .03). Patients of all ages with very-bad-risk cytogenetic abnormalities and/or FLT3-ITD (internal tandem duplication) mutation, or with secondary AML benefitted from HD cytarabine. CONCLUSION: HD cytarabine produces higher remission and survival rates than SD cytarabine, especially in patients younger than age 46 years.