Blood
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We reviewed 261 patients with chronicphase chronic myelogenous leukemia (CML) after interferon-alpha (IFN-alpha) failure treated with imatinib mesylate 400 mg daily. With a median follow-up time of 45 months, the major cytogenetic response rate was 73% and the complete cytogenetic response rate 63%. The estimated 4-year survival rate was 86%. ⋯ Patients could be divided into good (no adverse factors), intermediate (1 adverse factor), and poor-risk groups (2 or 3 adverse factors; 12% of patients) with estimated 4-year survival rates of 96%, 86%, and 49%, respectively (P <.00001). The 4-year cumulative major molecular response (quantitative reverse transcriptase-polymerase chain reaction [Q-PCR] = BCR-ABL/ABL less than 0.05%) rate was 43% and complete molecular response rate (BCR-ABL undetectable) 26%. Compared with a historical group of 251 similar patients treated with nonimatinib therapies, imatinib mesylate was associated with a better 4-year survival rate (86% versus 43%; P <.0001); the survival advantage was confirmed by multivariate analysis (hazard ratio, 0.19; P <.0001).
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Deficiencies of coagulation factors other than factor VIII and factor IX that cause bleeding disorders are inherited as autosomal recessive traits and are rare, with prevalences in the general population varying between 1 in 500 000 and 1 in 2 million for the homozygous forms. As a consequence of the rarity of these deficiencies, the type and severity of bleeding symptoms, the underlying molecular defects, and the actual management of bleeding episodes are not as well established as for hemophilia A and B. ⋯ Based upon this experience, this article reviews the genetic basis, prevalent clinical manifestations, and management of these disorders. The steps and actions necessary to improve the condition of these often neglected patients are outlined.
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X-linked agammaglobulinemia (XLA) is a human immunodeficiency caused by mutations in Bruton tyrosine kinase (Btk) and characterized by an arrest in early B-cell development, near absence of serum immunoglobulin, and recurrent bacterial infections. Using Btk- and Tec-deficient mice (BtkTec(-/-)) as a model for XLA, we determined if Btk gene therapy could correct this disorder. Bone marrow (BM) from 5-fluorouracil (5FU)-treated BtkTec(-/-) mice was transduced with a retroviral vector expressing human Btk and transplanted into BtkTec(-/-) recipients. ⋯ B-cell progenitors derived from Btk-transduced stem cells exhibited higher levels of Btk expression than non-B cells; and marking studies demonstrated a selective advantage for Btk-transduced B-lineage cells. BM derived from primary recipients also rescued Btk-dependent function in secondary hosts that had received a transplant. Together, these data demonstrate that gene transfer into hematopoietic stem cells can reconstitute Btk-dependent B-cell development and function in vivo, and strongly support the feasibility of pursuing Btk gene transfer for XLA.
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Cerebral X-linked adrenoleukodystrophy (X-ALD) is a disorder of very-long-chain fatty acid metabolism, adrenal insufficiency, and cerebral demyelination. Death occurs within 2 to 5 years of clinical onset without hematopoietic cell transplantation (HCT). One hundred twenty-six boys with X-ALD received HCT from 1982 to 1999. ⋯ Overall 5-year survival of 92% in patients with 0 or 1 neurologic deficits and magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) severity score less than 9 before HCT was superior to survival for all others (45%; P <.01). Baseline neurologic and neuropsychological function, degree of disability, and neuroradiologic status predicted outcomes following HCT. In this first comprehensive report of the international HCT experience for X-ALD, we conclude that boys with early-stage disease benefit from HCT, whereas boys with advanced disease may be candidates for experimental therapies.
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Postulating favorable antileukemic effect with improved safety, we used intravenous busulfan and fludarabine as conditioning therapy for allogeneic hematopoietic stem cell transplantation (HSCT) for acute myelogenous leukemia (AML) and myelodysplastic syndrome (MDS). Fludarabine 40 mg/m2 and intravenous busulfan 130 mg/m2 were given once daily for 4 days, with tacrolimus-methotrexate as graft-versus-host disease (GVHD) prophylaxis. We treated 74 patients with AML and 22 patients with MDS; patients had a median age of 45 years (range, 19-66 years). ⋯ Recipient age and donor type did not influence OS or EFS. Median busulfan clearance was 109 mL/min/m2 and median daily area-under-the-plasma-concentration-versus-time-curve was 4871 micromol-min, with negligible interdose variability in pharmacokinetic parameters. The results suggest that intravenous busulfan-fludarabine is an efficacious, reduced-toxicity, myeloablative-conditioning regimen for patients with AML or MDS undergoing HSCT.