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Biomedical subjects

F Guilhot

Publications and source records attributed to F Guilhot.

At least 55 records · Page 3Linked to original sources

Identification of several genes differentially expressed during progression of chronic myelogenous leukemia.

The Bcr-Abl fusion protein plays a crucial role in the initiation and maintenance of chronic myelogenous leukemia (CML). However, additional events are necessary for the transition from the chronic phase to the terminal phase of the disease. To identify genes involved in the disease progression, we constructed a subtractive library from enriched K562 cell mRNA. We obtained 1084 cDNA clones. After a specific hybridization of these clones with a cDNA probe from either chronic phase or K562 cells, 43 clones which present a differential hybridization level have been selected. Among them, several clones corresponded to ribosomal protein genes showing an increased transcription level during the blast crisis. We observed variations in the expression of a cellular adhesion molecule, a laminin-binding protein. An increased transcription level of the MAZ gene has been shown in the terminal phase of the disease. This gene encodes a protein that regulates the transcription of myc.

Blast Crisis↗

Does BCR-ABL genomic rearrangement persist in CML patients in complete remission after interferon alpha therapy?

Cytogenetic, interphase fluorescent in situ hybridization (FISH) and RT-PCR methods were used to study minimal residual disease in peripheral blood stem cells collected for autografting in three chronic myeloid leukemia (CML) patients in sustained complete cytogenetic remission after treatment with interferon alpha (IFNalpha). Karyotypic analysis failed to reveal Ph-positive metaphases. FISH detected 9-16% nuclei with a BCR-ABL fusion gene, contrasting with RT-PCR, performed in two cases, which was negative in one case and weakly positive in the other. RT-PCR was also subsequently weakly positive in the third patient. This discrepancy suggests that the BCR-ABL genomic rearrangement persists unexpressed in quiescent cells. These preliminary results, which need to be confirmed in larger series, suggest that monitoring residual disease in CML should be performed both at DNA and RNA levels. Moreover, autografting following IFNalpha therapy should be considered with caution because of the persistence of the BCR-ABL genomic rearrangement in a sizeable proportion of the cells.

Adult↗

t(3;17)(q21;q25) in Epstein-Barr virus associated peripheral T-cell lymphoma: a paediatric case.

We describe an immunocompetent 8-year-old boy with a serological profile indicating chronic infection by Epstein-Barr virus (EBV) who developed subcutaneous and pulmonary lesions related to a peripheral T-cell proliferation. No clonal rearrangement of T-cell receptor or immunoglobulin genes was seen. However, the finding of a t(3;17)(q21;q25) in 44 metaphases from one skin lesion demonstrated a clonal origin. We also showed that the proliferative T cells contained EBV genome leading to the diagnosis of EBV-associated peripheral T-cell lymphoma. Further cytogenetic and molecular studies are needed to identify genes implicated in the pathogenesis of this haematological malignancy.

Child↗

Interferon-alpha: mechanisms of action in chronic myelogenous leukemia in chronic phase.

Interferon-alpha has been shown to induce complete haematologic responses in chronic myelogenous leukemia patients and also cytogenetic responses. There is a clear correlation between cytogenetic responses and survival improvement. There is not a unique mechanism of action of IFN-alpha. IFN-alpha acts directly against leukemic cells and there are also other mechanisms of action such as immune stimulation, gene regulation and growth factors or interleukin stimulation.

Antineoplastic Agents↗

Comparison of autologous bone marrow transplantation and intensive chemotherapy as postremission therapy in adult acute myeloid leukemia. The Groupe Ouest Est Leucémies Aiguës Myéloblastiques (GOELAM).

Three intensive consolidation strategies are currently proposed to younger adults with acute myeloid leukemia (AML) in first complete remission (CR): allogeneic or autologous bone marrow transplantation (BMT) and intensive consolidation chemotherapy (ICC). Patients aged 15 to 50 years with de novo AML received an induction treatment with 7 days of cytarabine and either idarubicin or rubidazone. After achievement of a CR, patients up to the age of 40 and having an HLA-identical sibling were assigned to undergo an allogeneic BMT. All the other patients received a first course of ICC with high-dose cytarabine and the same anthracycline as for induction. They were then randomly assigned to either receive a second course of ICC with amsacrine and etoposide or a combination of busulfan and cyclosphosphamide followed by an unpurged autologous BMT. Of 517 eligible patients, 367 had a CR, but only 219 (59.5%) actually received the planned intensive postremission treatment (73 allogeneic BMT, 75 autologous BMT, and 71 ICC). With a median follow-up of 62 months, the 4-year disease-free survival (DFS) of the 367 patients in CR was 39.5%. The 4-year overall survival (OS) of the 517 eligible patients was 40.5%. In multivariate analysis, DFS and OS were influenced only by the initial white blood cell count and by the French-American-British classification. The type of postremission therapy had no significant impact on the outcome. There was no difference in the 4-year DFS and OS between 88 patients for whom an allogeneic BMT was scheduled (respectively, 44% and 53%) and 134 patients of the same age category and without an HLA-identical sibling (respectively, 38% and 53%). Similarly, there was no difference in the outcome between autologous BMT and ICC. The 4-year DFS was 44% for the 86 patients randomly assigned to autologous BMT and 40% for the 78 patients assigned to ICC (P = .41). The 4-year OS was similar in the two groups (50% v 54.5%, P = .72). The median duration of hospitalization and thrombocytopenia were longer after autologous BMT (39 v 32 days, P = .006, and 109.5 v 18.5 days, P = .0001, respectively). After a first course of ICC, a second course of chemotherapy is less myelotoxic than an unpurged autologous BMT but yields comparable DFS and OS rates.

Acute Disease↗

Interferon alfa-2b combined with cytarabine versus interferon alone in chronic myelogenous leukemia. French Chronic Myeloid Leukemia Study Group.

BACKGROUND: Treatment with interferon prolongs survival in chronic myelogenous leukemia. We conducted a clinical trial to assess the efficacy of treatment with a combination of interferon and cytarabine. METHODS: Previously untreated patients with chronic myelogenous leukemia were randomly assigned to receive either hydroxyurea (50 mg per kilogram of body weight per day) and interferon alfa-2b (5 million units per square meter of body-surface area per day), or hydroxyurea and interferon in the same dosages plus monthly courses of cytarabine (20 mg per square meter per day, for 10 days). The end points were overall survival, complete hematologic remission at 6 months, and major cytogenetic response (less than 35 percent Philadelphia chromosome-positive cells in the bone marrow) at 12 months. RESULTS: The trial was stopped when a sequential analysis showed a benefit of interferon and cytarabine. A significant improvement in survival was observed in the interferon-cytarabine group (360 patients) as compared with the interferon group (361 patients) (P=0.02; relative risk of death, 0.64; 95 percent confidence interval, 0.44 to 0.93). After three years, the survival rate was 85.7 percent with interferon and cytarabine and 79.1 percent with interferon alone. The rate of hematologic response was higher in the interferon-cytarabine group than in the interferon group (P=0.003). Major cytogenetic responses were observed 12 months after randomization in 126 of 311 patients treated with interferon and cytarabine (41 percent) and in 75 of 314 patients treated with interferon only (24 percent, P<0.001). CONCLUSIONS: The combination of interferon and cytarabine, as compared with interferon alone, increases the rate of major cytogenetic response and prolongs survival in patients with the chronic phase of chronic myelogenous leukemia.

Adolescent↗

Central nervous system relapses after autologous stem cell transplantation for myeloma. Report of two cases.

We report on two cases of central nervous system (CNS) relapse after high-dose chemotherapy and autologous stem cell transplantation. A 55-year-old man received two courses of vincristin, doxorubicin and dexamethasone (VAD) as an induction treatment for stage IIIB IgG kappa multiple myeloma. Bone marrow stem cell collection was performed after a high-dose melphalan (HDM) course (140 mg/m2). Autologous bone marrow transplantation (ABMT) was performed with this cryo-preserved unpurged bone marrow sample after a second HDM course. Three months after ABMT, the patient presented with signs of central nervous involvement with plasma cells and monoclonal IgG kappa in the cerebral fluid. The patient died despite systemic and intrathecal chemotherapy. A 50-year-old man was initially treated with 3 courses of VAD for a stage IIIA IgD lambda multiple myeloma. Blood stem cell were collected after a course of high-dose etoposide and cyclophosphamide. ABMT was performed after total body irradiation (TBI) and HDM. Three months later, he presented with right leg palsy and a lumbar puncture showed numerous plasma cells and the presence of the IgG lambda. The patient died of neurological complications three months later. Extramedullary occurred prior to medullary relapse in the two cases, suggesting the presence of an extramedullary clone of plasma cells with a high degree of chemo-resistance. Although high-dose chemotherapy appears promising, this therapeutic approach could allow the occurrence of presently unobserved complications. Wether CNS prophylaxis is indicated in this context, as recommended in leukemia, remains an open question.

Central Nervous System Diseases↗

Allogeneic bone marrow transplantation for hypereosinophilic syndrome with advanced myelofibrosis.

A 33-year-old man with an atypical course of hypereosinophilic syndrome including malignant hypercalcemia, osteolytic lesions and evolution into severe myelofibrosis was treated by allogeneic bone marrow transplantation after conditioning with cytoxan and total body irradiation. As the transplant was sex-mismatched, chimerism was studied by means of cytogenetic analysis and Y chromosomal DNA amplification by PCR assay. Long-term complete remission has been assessed by normalization of blood cell counts, magnetic resonance imaging and karyotypic analysis. A relapse was observed 40 months after transplantation. The patient remains alive 44 months post-BMT. This case report is compared with those reported in the literature.

Adult↗

Early allogeneic transplantation favorably influences the outcome of adult patients suffering from acute myeloid leukemia. Société Française de Greffe de Moelle (SFGM).

Allogeneic BMT for patients with acute myeloid leukemia (AML) is presently a reference therapy. The indications for this therapy mainly rely upon prognostic factors, and their importance is constantly reassessed. To examine the impact of time from diagnosis to transplant on survival and leukemia-free survival (LFS), we analyzed 109 patients from the database of the SFGM comprising patients who had all received an HLA-identical allogeneic BMT for a diagnosis of AML in first complete remission (CR1) between January 1987 and December 1992. All patients were conditioned with cyclophosphamide (CY) and total body irradiation (TBI) (CYTBI), and methotrexate (MTX) + cyclosporin A (CsA) were used as graft-versus-host disease (GVHD) prophylaxis. Patient characteristics were: age = 33 +/- 9, M/F = 64/45, white blood cell count (WBC) at diagnosis = 27 +/- 42 x 10(9)/l, FAB distribution: M1 and M2 = 55; M3 = 15, M4 and M5 = 33, M0, M6 and M7 = 6. Karyotyping was carried out for 64 patients: 32 had a normal karyotype, 16 had good prognosis abnormalities (t(8;21), t(15;17), inv 16) and 16 patients had other abnormalities. Eleven patients needed two courses of induction to achieve CR. Time between diagnosis and BMT was 120 (64-287) days. Forty-nine patients developed grade > or = 2 acute GVHD (actuarial probability = 46%). With a median follow-up of 50 months (27-100), the 5-year probabilities for transplant-related mortality (TRM), relapse, overall survival and LFS are respectively 25%, 26%, 59% and 55%. A multivariate analysis showed that survival is adversely influenced by three independent factors: time to transplant (> 120 days vs < or = 120 days), acute GVHD (grade 2-4 vs grade 0-1) and age (> 33 vs < or = 33). LFS is only influenced by the first two of these factors. The favorable impact of a shorter time from diagnosis to transplant should lead to performing the transplant as early as possible. Practically speaking, this means that when such therapy is chosen for a patient with CR1 AML, the search for an allogeneic donor should begin immediately and transplant be performed as soon as possible.

Acute Disease↗

Granulocyte colony-stimulating factor given in addition to interferon-alpha to mobilize peripheral blood stem cells for autologous transplantation in chronic myeloid leukaemia.

In order to potentially mobilize and harvest the Ph cells observed in most patients with chronic myeloid leukaemia (CML) during interferon-alpha (IF-alpha) therapy, G-CSF (filgrastim), 5 microg/kg/d, was administered subcutaneously together with IF-alpha to 30 CML patients in haematological remission but with various degrees of cytogenetic remission, after IF-alpha therapy. Peripheral blood stem cells (PBSC) were harvested using standard aphereses from day 5 of G-CSF Patients underwent one to four (median three) aphereses. Median total yields/kg were 7.6 (range 3.8-25) x 10(8) MNC, 3.4 (0-140) x 10(6) CD34+ cells, and 17 (1.1-107) x 10(4) CFU-GM. No patient had a significant increase in the percentage of Ph+ cells in the bone marrow under G-CSF therapy. The percentage of Ph+ cells in apheresis products tended to decrease between the first and the last apheresis (P = 0.05). 14 patients who were not responsive to IF-alpha were transplanted after conditioning with busulphan 16 mg/kg and melphalan 140 mg/m2. Median time to neutrophils > 0.5 x 10(9)/l was 20 d (16-114 d) and to platelets > 50 x 10(9)/l 18 d (12-149 d). Nine patients had a major cytogenetic response post graft, which correlated with the amount of Ph+ cells reinfused with the graft (P = 0.02). We conclude that this procedure is feasible, allowing the harvest of enough PBSC, some of them Ph- in patients who responded to IF-alpha, to allow autologous transplantation.

Adult↗

Cutaneous involvement in children with acute lymphoblastic leukemia or lymphoblastic lymphoma. The Children's Leukemia Cooperative Group of the European Organization of Research and Treatment of Cancer (EORTC).

OBJECTIVE: Skin involvement in children with acute monocytic leukemia or CD30-positive anaplastic large-cell lymphoma is well-known. In contrast, very little is known about the malignant cutaneous infiltrates in children with acute lymphoblatic leukemia (ALL) or lymphoblastic lymphoma (LBL). This study was designed to determine the frequency of these specific lesions in childhood ALL or LBL and the characteristics of such patients. DESIGN: We studied the clinical and biological findings of children with cutaneous involvement at initial diagnosis of ALL or LBL enrolled between August 1989 and March 1995 in the multicentric trial 58881 of the Children's Leukemia Cooperative Group of the European Organization of Research and Treatment of Cancer (EORTC). RESULTS: Among the 1359 children enrolled in the multicenter trial EORTC 58881, 24 presented with skin involvement at diagnosis. ALL was diagnosed in 15 patients and LBL in 9. In 15 cases, skin lesions were observed within a median time of 6 weeks (range, a few days to 8 months) before the diagnosis of the hematologic disease. Twenty-one children had at least one skin lesion located on the head. Diffuse cutaneous lesions were observed in 7 infants with high-risk ALL. Seventeen of the 24 children remain in the first complete remission (median follow-up of 3 years; range 2 months to 5 years) and 3 are in the second remission with a follow-up of 14 to 24 months. CONCLUSION: The present study demonstrates that cutaneous involvement can be an early manifestation of ALL or LBL. Cutaneous leukemic infiltrates can be observed in children with standard risk as well as in high-risk ALL. Cutaneous involvement in children with LBL is mainly associated with a B-cell precursor immunophenotype of the lymphomatous cells. The most frequent location of skin lesions in children with ALL or LBL is on the head. Further studies are needed to evaluate the prognosis of children with such involvement at diagnosis.

Age Factors↗

11q13 rearrangement in B cell chronic lymphocytic leukemia.

Translocation t(11;14)(q13;q32) and/or 11q13 rearrangements have been reported in various B cell immunoproliferative disorders. They appear to be frequent in mantle cell zone lymphoma (MZL) and rare in B-cell chronic lymphocytic leukemia (B-CLL). Discrimination between MZL and B-CLL is sometimes uncertain on the basis of morphology and immunophenotype. To evaluate the incidence of 11q13 rearrangements in B-CLL, purified B cells from 59 untreated patients were studied by cytogenetic methods after short term stimulated culture. Abnormalities at band 11q13 were found in 2 cases only. Fluorescent in situ hybridization (FISH) study confirmed del(11)(q13) in one case and showed translocation t(11;13) in another one. Thus this rearrangement appears to be very rare in B-CLL and its finding should lead to a careful search for the characteristic features of MZL, namely, morphology, the expression of CD5 without CD23, high density monotypic SIg, together with t(11;14) and/or bcl-1/IgH rearrangement.

Aged↗

Cost-effectiveness of interferon-alpha and conventional chemotherapy in chronic myelogenous leukemia.

OBJECTIVE: To compare the cost-effectiveness of interferon-alpha with that of hydroxyurea as initial therapy for patients with chronic myelogenous leukemia (CML) in the chronic phase. DESIGN: A decision analysis and Markov model that described the natural history of the therapeutic process. The Markov model contained two treatment arms (interferon-alpha and hydroxyurea) and eight states of health (complete hematologic remission with cytogenetic response, complete hematologic remission without cytogenetic response, partial hematologic remission, chronic phase without hematologic remission, accelerated phase, blast crisis, bone marrow transplantation, and death). Probabilities, costs, and utilities were obtained from published clinical studies and clinical investigators. MEASUREMENT: Quality-adjusted years of life saved and costs and qualities discounted at 5% per year. SETTING: University medical centers in North America and Europe. PATIENTS: Meta-analysis of results from patients studied in clinical trials. RESULTS: The model's predictions of median survival (69 months with interferon-alpha therapy and 58 months with hydroxyurea therapy) were derived from data in the recent literature. In patients 50 years of age, interferon-alpha improved life expectancy over hydroxyurea by approximately 18 months. The marginal cost-effectiveness of interferon-alpha (incremental discounted cost of interferon-alpha compared with that of conventional therapy) was $34800 per quality-adjusted year of life saved. The model was sensitive to the monthly cost of interferon-alpha therapy (if the cost of interferon-alpha is reduced by one third, the cost-effectiveness becomes $19300 per quality-adjusted year of life saved) but was not particularly sensitive to the costs associated with blast crisis or bone marrow transplantation. The other significant variable was quality of life during therapy with interferon-alpha; when this measure was varied from 70% to 100% of the quality of life during hydroxyurea therapy, cost-effectiveness changed from $123200 to $25620 per quality-adjusted year of life saved. When the quality of life associated with interferon-alpha was less than 62% of the quality of life associated with hydroxyurea, the discounted quality-adjusted life expectancy with interferon-alpha was less than that with hydroxyurea. CONCLUSION: Compared with hydroxyurea, interferon-alpha is, in most clinical scenarios, a cost-effective initial therapy for patients with chronic-phase CML who can tolerate the drug.

Antineoplastic Agents↗

Mediastinal tumor size and response to chemotherapy are the only prognostic factors in supradiaphragmatic Hodgkin's disease treated by ABVD plus radiotherapy: ten-year results of the Paris-Ouest-France 81/12 trial, including 262 patients.

PURPOSE: To identify prognostic factors in 262 patients with supradiaphragmatic Hodgkin's disease (HD), clinical stages (CS) I and II, prospectively treated between 1981 and 1988 according to the Paris-Ouest-France (POF) 81/12 protocol by three 1-month cycles of doxorubicin, bleomycin, vinblastine, and dacarbazine plus methylprednisone (ABVD-MP) followed by subtotal nodal irradiation (RT). PATIENTS AND METHODS: The size of mediastinal tumor (MT) was measured in all patients: 66 did not have MT (NoMT); 105 had a small-size MT (SSMT), ie, mediastinal mass ratio (MMR) less than 0.33; 58 had a medium-size MT (MSMT), ie, MMR > or = 0.33 and less than 0.45; and 33 had a bulky MT (BuMT), ie, MMR > or = 0.45. All patients received three cycles (CS IA, one cycle only) of ABVD-MP; patients in partial remission (PR) or complete remission (CR) after chemotherapy (CT) received supradiaphragmatic RT (involved fields, 40 Gy; adjacent fields, 30 Gy) plus lumboaortic and splenic RT (30 Gy); patients not in CR or PR after CT received salvage CT. RESULTS: Two hundred seventeen patients (82.8%) entered CR after CT and 258 (98.5%) after RT. Ten-year freedom-from-progression (FFP) and survival rateswere 88.6% and 89.4%, respectively. According to univariate analysis, MT size and post-CT status were the only factors to influence both FFP and survival. For patients with NoMT or SSMT, those with MSMT, and those with BuMT, FFP rates were 94.1%, 87.0%, and 63.0% (P < .001), respectively, while corresponding survival rates were 92.6%, 87.2%, and 78.2% (P < .05). FFP rates were significantly different between the patients who achieved CR and those who did not achieve CR after CT: 94.6% versus 65.3% (P < .001); corresponding survival rates were 89.9% and 73.7% (P < .01). Multivariate analysis confirmed that MT size and post-CT status were the only two prognostic factors for FFP; for survival, the same two characteristics, as well as age (< 40 v > or = 40 years), significantly affected prognosis. We were thus able to identify three groups. The 33 patients (12.6%) with a BuMT had 10-year FFP and survival rates of 63.0% and 78.2%, respectively. Of 229 patients without BuMT, the 195 who attained CR after CT had an optimal prognosis (FFP, 96.6%; survival, 93.6%), while those who failed to achieve CR after CT had an intermediate prognosis (FFP, 68.8%; survival, 77.6%). CONCLUSION: These results demonstrate the independent impact on HD prognosis of tumor burden and post-CT status.

Adolescent↗

Monitoring and prognostic evaluation of sex-mismatched bone marrow transplantation by competitive PCR on Y chromosome sequences.

In one case out of four, allogeneic BMT concerns a male recipient and a female donor. The monitoring of sex-matched BMT can be carried out by PCR amplification on Y-specific chromosome sequences (YCS), whatever the hematological disease. Twelve patients with sex-mismatched non-T-depleted BMT were first studied through a qualitative PCR, which gave semi-quantitative results. When the qualitative PCR revealed YCS, a competitive amplification was performed in order to estimate the YCS amount in the patient blood sample. For the purpose of the study, we classified the patients in two categories according to the results obtained 9 months after BMT. For 10 patients, we did not detect any YCS amplification after this time. These patients were in complete cytogenetic and clinical remission. For the remaining two patients, we always found male DNA in their blood samples. These patients were in cytogenetic remission but relapsed and died 21 and 25 months after BMT. Our results suggest that the persistence of male cells in peripheral blood, even at the low rate of 1% or 0.1%, 1 year after sex-mismatched BMT, is a bad prognosis.

Base Sequence↗