De-novo acute myeloid leukemia in a BRCA positive female with locally treated ductal carcinoma In Situ.

Acute myeloid leukemia (AML) is primarily a disease of older adults and can arise de novo, in relation to previous treatment or in the setting of underlying hematological disease. While it is known to arise from chemoradiation in the setting of breast cancer, little is known about the association between BRCA carriers and AML. We report a case of a young female BRCA carrier who develops de novo AML without prior chemoradiation treatment, and examine if there is a link between BRCA and developing leukemia.

A Retrospective Study of Double-hit Lymphomas in Elderly Patients (Aged > 70 Years): Overall Outcomes.

BACKGROUND: Double-hit lymphomas (DHLs) are high-grade diffuse large B-cell lymphomas with concurrent translocations involving myc and bcl-2 and/or bcl-6. A patient with DHL often has advanced disease at presentation and typically responds poorly to standard therapy with R-CHOP (rituximab, cyclophosphamide, doxorubicin, vincristine, prednisone). More intensive treatment regimens have been studied; however, few data are available on the outcomes in elderly patients (aged > 70 years) treated with these therapies. We retrospectively studied the efficacy and tolerability of chemotherapy regimens in elderly patients within the Advocate Healthcare System. MATERIALS AND METHODS: A system-wide search of patients treated from 2012 to 2017 was completed to identify patients with c-myc with bcl-2 and/or bcl-6 translocations using fluorescence in situ hybridization. The patients were reviewed for the following: age at diagnosis, stage, lactate dehydrogenase, Eastern Cooperative Oncology Group performance status, chemotherapy details, grade 3/4 toxicities, and response to therapy. Overall survival (OS) and event-free survival (EFS) were calculated. RESULTS: We identified 17 patients (9 men and 8 women) with a median age of 73 years (range, 70-89 years). Six patients received R-EPOCH (rituximab, etoposide, prednisolone, vincristine, cyclophosphamide, doxorubicin), 5 received R-CHOP, 1 received bendamustine and rituximab, 1 received the MaGrath regimen, and 1 received cyclophosphamide and rituximab. Three patients were not treated and were referred to hospice care. For all patients, the median follow-up period was 25 months, the EFS and OS were 28% at 36 months, and the median survival was 7.5 months. For patients treated with R-EPOCH, the EFS was 33% at 24 months. For the R-CHOP group, the EFS was 40% at 24 months. Most common grade 3/4 toxicities were neutropenia, anemia, thrombocytopenia, and infections and were more common in the R-EPOCH group. Three patients each died in the R-EPOCH and R-CHOP groups. CONCLUSION: Although the numbers are small, elderly patients with DHL can achieve durable EFS and OS. Using the comprehensive geriatric assessment can aid in decision making in the treatment options for elderly patients. Our retrospective analysis, given a small sample size, suggests that intensive treatment regimens can be offered to elderly patients with DHL.

Analysis of HER2 gene amplification using an automated fluorescence in situ hybridization signal enumeration system.

The HER2 gene, amplified in 10 to 35% of invasive human breast carcinomas, has prognostic and therapeutic implications. Fluorescent in situ hybridization is one method currently used for assessing HER2 status, but fluorescent in situ hybridization involves the time-consuming step of manual signal enumeration. To address this issue, Vysis has developed an automated signal enumeration system, Vysis AutoVysion. A multicenter, blinded study was conducted on 39 formalin-fixed, paraffin-embedded invasive breast carcinoma specimens, including 20 HER2 nonamplified and 19 HER2 amplified (weakly to highly amplified), provided in duplicate to each study site for analysis. Calculation of the HER2/CEP17 ratio and the hands-on time of both manual and automated enumeration approaches were compared. Overall agreement of HER2 classification results (positive and negative) was 92.5% (196 of 212). The Vysis AutoVysion System requires manual enumeration for cases with scanner results within the ratio range of 1.5 to 3.0. When the data in this range are excluded, the agreement between manual and scanner results is 98.8% (169 of 171). The average Vysis AutoVysion System hands-on time per slide was 4.59 versus 7.47 minutes for manual signal enumeration (savings of 2.88 minutes/slide). These data suggest that the Vysis AutoVysion System can correctly classify specimens and may increase the overall efficiency of HER2 testing.

Simultaneous presentation of multiple myeloma and acute monocytic leukemia.

Acute leukemia frequently has been described as a late complication of chemotherapy with alkylating agents in patients treated for multiple myeloma. However, the simultaneous occurrence of multiple myeloma and acute leukemia in the same patient, without previous exposure to chemotherapy, is a rare association. We describe a case of concomitant involvement by multiple myeloma and acute monocytic leukemia. To our knowledge, only 9 such cases have been reported in the literature to date. We discuss the criteria used in diagnosing the 2 separate diseases and the possible mechanisms responsible for this occurrence.