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N Bunin

Publications and source records attributed to N Bunin.

At least 37 records · Page 2Linked to original sources

Bone marrow transplantation in pediatric patients with severe aplastic anemia: cyclophosphamide and anti-thymocyte globulin conditioning followed by recombinant human granulocyte-macrophage colony stimulating factor.

PURPOSE: Graft rejection remains a serious problem in patients transplanted for severe aplastic anemia. Although additional immunosuppression with irradiation may decrease graft failure, significant sequelae may ensue. We evaluated a nonirradiation containing conditioning regimen for children with severe aplastic anemia with matched sibling donors utilizing cyclophosphamide and anti-thymocyte globulin (ATG). To accelerate myeloid recovery, GM-CSF was used posttransplant. PATIENTS AND METHODS: Twelve patients, with a median age of 3 years underwent BMT from HLA identical sibling (n = 11) or syngeneic (n = 1) donors. Conditioning was cyclophosphamide 50 mg/kg x 4 days and anti-thymocyte globulin 30 mg/kg x 3 days. GM-CSF was administered at 10 micrograms/kg until a neutrophil count of 1,000 was achieved. Cyclosporine alone was used for graft-versus-host disease prophylaxis. RESULTS: All patients achieved durable engraftment at follow-up of 5-51 + months, with the exception of the identical twin. Median time to neutrophil counts > 200/microliters, 500/microliters, and 1,000/microliters were 12, 13, and 15 days, respectively. Acute GVHD of less than or equal to grade II occurred in four patients; one patient had grade III. This has resolved in all but one. CONCLUSION: The nonradiation conditioning regimen of cyclophosphamide/ATG appears to achieve durable engraftment in transfused children with matched sibling donors. GM-CSF may accelerate myeloid recovery without exacerbating GVHD, but its contribution to allogeneic transplant required further study.

Adolescent↗

A study of thiotepa, etoposide and fractionated total body irradiation as a preparative regimen prior to bone marrow transplantation for poor prognosis patients with neuroblastoma.

We report the toxicity and efficacy of a new conditioning regimen for bone marrow transplantation (BMT) in children with poor prognosis neuroblastoma (NBL). Twenty-seven patients with poor prognosis NBL were treated with teniposide (360 mg/m2) or etoposide (500 mg/m2), thiotepa (600-900 mg/m2), and 1200 cGy fractionated total body irradiation (fTBI) followed by autologous marrow rescue (n = 19) or allogeneic BMT from HLA-identical siblings (n = 8). The two patients who received teniposide, 600 mg/m2 thiotepa and fTBI had minimal toxicity but relapsed 4 and 12 months post-auto BMT. The next two patients received 750 mg/m2 thiotepa, 500 mg/m2 etoposide and TBI. They tolerated the conditioning regimen well and are alive and in remission 77 and 75 months post-BMT. At the next thiotepa dose level (900 mg/m2), the first two allograft recipients both experienced fatal regimen-related toxicity. All subsequent allograft recipients received 750 mg/m2 thiotepa and autograft recipients received 900 mg/m2 thiotepa. As of 1 April 1995, eight of the 19 patients who received autologous marrow are surviving disease-free 21 to 77 months post-BMT. Nine autograft recipients relapsed at 2 to 37 months following transplantation. One patient died of hepatic veno-occlusive disease 2 months after auto BMT, and one of pneumonia 6 months post-transplantation. Three allograft recipients have relapsed at 6, 10 and 39 months post-transplant and three are alive and in remission 75, 53 and 27 months post-BMT. Overall, 11/27 patients (41%) are alive and in remission 21-77 months (median 47 months) following BMT. A conditioning regimen consisting of 500 mg/m2 etoposide, thiotepa (750 mg/m2 for allograft recipients and 900 mg/m2 for autograft recipients) and 1200 cGy fTBI has acceptable toxicity and is at least as effective as melphalan-containing regimens in the treatment of high-risk NBL.

Adolescent↗

Unrelated bone marrow donor transplants for children with leukemia or myelodysplasia.

Allogeneic bone marrow transplantation is the treatment of choice for many childhood leukemias. The donor of choice-an HLA matched sibling-is only available about 30% of the time. Unrelated donors are an alternative choice. In this report, we describe the results of unrelated donor bone marrow transplants (BMT) in 50 children with leukemia (25 acute lymphoblastic leukemia [ALL], 3 acute myeloid leukemia [AML], 3 juvenile chronic myelogenous leukemia [JCML], 10 chronic myeloid leukemia [CML]) or myelodysplastic syndrome (MDS; 9). The median age of the 31 male and 19 female patients was 9 years (range 2 to 18). Only 13 patients were serologically matched at HLA-A, B, DR, and DQ with their donors; 6 of these were reactive in mixed lymphocyte culture. The other 37 patients were mismatched for one (36 patients) or more (1 patient) HLA antigens. Pretransplant conditioning included cytosine arabinoside, cyclophosphamide, fractionated total body irradiation (TBI) (with lung, liver, and more recently, kidney shielding), and methylprednisolone. High-risk patients also received busulfan. Graft-versus-host disease (GVHD) prophylaxis consisted of T-cell depletion with IgM monoclonal antibody T10B9 plus complement and posttransplant cyclosporine-A. Forty-nine patients (98%) engrafted. Median times to greater than 500 polymorphonuclear leukocytes (PMN)/microL and greater than 25,000 platelets/microL were 18 and 20 days, respectively. Acute GVHD > or = grade II occurred in 16 patients (33%); 13 (81%) of these died. Chronic GVHD developed in 30 of 40 patients at risk, but was extensive in only 5. Event-free survival (EFS) for all patients was 44% +/- 7% (median follow-up was 49 months), and overall survival was 50 +/- 7%. Patients with low-risk disease (ALL or AML in first or second remission and CML in chronic phase) had a better EFS than children with high-risk disease (60% v 34%, P = .07). There was no significant difference in EFS between patients who were serologically matched with their donors (46%) and those who were partially mismatched (43%) (P = .97). These data compare favorably with published reports for children transplanted with HLA-matched sibling donors and should encourage earlier consideration of unrelated donor BMT in children with leukemia or myelodysplasia.

Actuarial Analysis↗

Neurologic complications after allogeneic marrow transplantation for sickle cell anemia.

Seven of 21 patients with sickle cell anemia developed neurologic complications 5 to 243 days (median, 33 days) after allogeneic marrow transplantation. Among these 7 patients, indications for transplantation included either a past history of stroke (4 patients) or recurrent severe vaso-occlusive events (3 patients). All received marrow from an HLA-identical sibling after preparation with busulfan and cyclophosphamide, and in 4 patients with antithymocyte globulin. Five of 6 patients developing seizures received anticonvulsant and supportive treatment with resolution of neurologic abnormalities. Three patients experienced intracranial bleeding, which was fatal in two. Of the 14 patients free of neurologic complications, 4 patients had experienced stroke before transplantation. However, among all patients with prior stroke, the incidence of intracranial hemorrhage was 38% (3/8), whereas none of the 13 patients without prior stroke developed posttransplant intracranial bleeding (P = .026). We conclude that patients with sickle cell anemia are at increased risk for neurologic complications after marrow ablative therapy and that patients with prior stroke are at increased risk for intracranial hemorrhage. Transplantation of patients before the onset of overt stroke may reduce this risk.

Adolescent↗

Fractionated total-body irradiation preceding high-dose cytosine arabinoside as a preparative regimen for bone marrow transplantation in children with acute leukemia.

Twenty children with acute leukemia between 3 and 19 years of age underwent allogeneic bone marrow transplantation from HLA-matched sibling donors after conditioning with total-body irradiation (1,200 cGy in six fractions of 200 cGy twice daily for 3 days) and high dose cytosine arabinoside (3 g/m2 given every 12 hours for 12 doses). Three patients died with acute toxicity. Six patients developed grade II acute graft versus host disease. With a median follow-up of 68 months (range 26-96 months), thirteen children (65%) are alive and in remission with Karnofsky scores of 90-100%. A patient with AML in resistant relapse went into remission but relapsed and died 5 months post-transplantation. Three other patients relapsed, 8, 12, and 16 months post BMT. Our results suggest that this conditioning regimen is associated with high but manageable acute toxicity and may be highly effective in controlling leukemia resistant to conventional chemotherapy.

Adolescent↗

Bone marrow transplantation for children with acute myelogenous leukemia.

This article reviews bone marrow transplantation (BMT) in acute myelogenous leukemia (AML) of children from adoption of allogeneic BMT for children in first complete remission to the present where autologous BMT, marrow purging, and alternative donors are the major issues. Match related BMT in first remission achieved long-term disease free survival in well over half the young patients. However, as only 25-30% of patients have a matched sibling donor, other options for BMT has been explored, including autologous BMT and unrelated donor BMT. There are many issues that require further study regarding autologous transplant, including the efficacy and benefits of marrow purging. Unrelated donor transplants offer encouraging results in suitable patients, but bring with them the increased risk of complications. BMT is also successful in some children in second remission or who have refractory disease. A recent development in the transplant of children with AML is the use of nonradiation-containing conditioning regimens to avoid potential long-term sequelae of total body irradiation. Nonradiation regimens appear to be as efficacious as radiation-containing regimens for these children. The superiority of BMT over chemotherapy has recently been challenged, as improved supportive care and extremely intensive therapy have resulted in approximately 75% of children achieving a remission and 30-40% of patients surviving. Recent studies have focused upon answering the question regarding the role of BMT in children in first remission. Strategies to improve the outcome of BMT and comparison sequelae of BMT to those on high dose chemotherapy are issues that need to be addressed.

Bone Marrow Transplantation↗

Bone marrow transplantation for high risk neuroblastoma at the Children's Hospital of Philadelphia: an update.

A bone marrow transplant (BMT) protocol including surgical excision, local and total body irradiation, and high dose multiagent chemotherapy based on melphalan and bone marrow rescue has been in effect for children with high risk or relapsed neuroblastoma at the Children's Hospital of Philadelphia since 1979. The initial results were reported in 1984 [August et al.: J Clin Oncol 2:609-616, 1984]. This report updates the initial results and those that followed changes in the original conditioning regimen. Forty-two patients were treated between may 1979 and November 1987, and included 27 whose disease had relapsed and 15 who received BMT as part of primary treatment. Allogeneic marrow was given to 12 and autologous marrow to 30; in 7 of these 30, the marrow was purged with monoclonal antibodies and magnetic beads. The 4-year actuarial survival rate is 29%. Ten patients died of early treatment-related complications, 18 died of progressive disease, and 2 died of late complications (1 AIDS and 1 acute myelogenous leukemia). Censoring the two late complications the actuarial 4-year relapse-free survival rate becomes 32%. The longest interval after BMT to relapse was 20 months. There was no significant difference in the survival for patients transplanted following relapse or in first remission. The better survival for patients rescued with autologous marrow (30%) is not statistically significantly different from the result with allogeneic marrow (17%).

Adult↗

Increasing incidence of adenovirus disease in bone marrow transplant recipients.

Adenovirus infections in 201 bone marrow transplant (BMT) recipients over 4 years were retrospectively reviewed. Forty-two patients (20.9%) had positive adenovirus cultures after BMT. There was a higher incidence of adenovirus infections in pediatric patients than in adults (31.3% vs. 13.6%, P = .003). In addition, the time of onset of adenovirus infection after transplant was earlier in pediatric patients (mean, < 30 days) than in adults (> 90 days). Adenovirus type 35 was the most common serotype identified. One-third of adenovirus-positive patients had definite or probable adenovirus disease. Moderate to severe acute graft-versus-host disease and isolation of adenovirus from two or more sites were significant risk factors for adenovirus disease. This report documents a higher incidence of both adenovirus infection and disease than do previous studies. Adenovirus may emerge as a more frequent pathogen as more high-risk BMT transplants are done.

Adenovirus Infections, Human↗

DNA-based HLA typing of nonhematopoietic tissue used to select the marrow transplant donor for successful treatment of transfusion-associated graft-versus-host disease.

Transfusion-associated graft-versus-host disease (TAGVHD) is a rare and usually fatal complication of blood transfusion which can arise when immunocompetent lymphocytes from the donor of a cellular blood product are transfused into a severely immunocompromised recipient. We describe the case of an 8-month-old male with a severe combined immunodeficiency syndrome who developed TAGVHD after receiving an unirradiated transfusion. Serologic HLA typing of the parents, the patient, and the blood donor demonstrated the foreign origin of circulating lymphocytes, confirming the diagnosis of TAGVHD. The manifestations of TAGVHD did not respond to medical immunosuppressive therapy, and bone marrow transplantation was planned to treat the underlying immunodeficiency as well as the TAGVHD. By using DNA-based class I and class II HLA typing, the child's HLA type was determined from nonhematopoietic tissues. This information proved critical in selecting the bone marrow donor. The child received immunosuppression, myeloablation, and a T-depleted, maternal bone marrow graft mismatched at one HLA class II allele. Trilineage hematopoietic engraftment occurred within 3 weeks, and the child remains clinically stable with no evidence of TAGVHD more than 2 years after the transplant. This case illustrates that TAGVHD can be successfully treated by allogeneic bone marrow transplantation and that DNA-based HLA typing can play a unique role in the diagnosis and management of TAGVHD.

Bone Marrow Transplantation↗

T-cell-depleted maternal bone marrow transplantation for siblings with X-linked severe combined immunodeficiency.

Prenatal diagnosis of X-linked severe combined immunodeficiency in a male fetus made possible elective neonatal bone marrow transplantation before onset of symptoms. Bone marrow transplantation was performed by using T-cell-depleted maternal marrow that had been cryopreserved 2 years earlier, at the time that his older affected brother underwent transplantation. The second patient had less morbidity and more rapid reconstitution of his immune function.

Alleles↗

Central role of tumour necrosis factor, GM-CSF, and interleukin 1 in the pathogenesis of juvenile chronic myelogenous leukaemia.

In previous studies on patients with juvenile chronic myelogenous leukaemia (JCML), we found excessive proliferation of malignant monocyte-macrophage elements in the absence of exogenous growth factor, and impaired growth of normal haematopoietic progenitors. In the current study, six newly-diagnosed JCML patients were investigated to characterize the disease further. In co-cultures, JCML cell culture supernatant as well as patient plasma obtained at diagnosis produced a striking reduction in numbers of control marrow BFU-E, CFU-GM, CFU-Meg and CFU-GEMM colonies. Monoclonal anti-tumour necrosis factor alpha neutralizing antibodies (anti-TNF-alpha Ab) abolished these inhibitory properties. In sharp contrast, JCML supernatants exerted a marked growth-promoting effect on autologous JCML cells cultured in clonogenic assays. Anti-TNF-alpha Ab and anti-granulocyte-macrophage colony-stimulating factor neutralizing antibodies (anti-GM-CSF Ab) both reversed the stimulating effect. Recombinant GM-CSF and recombinant TNF alpha produced a profound increase in JCML colonies when tested individually and anti-GM-CSF Ab reversed the TNF-alpha effect. Expression studies of TNF-alpha and TNF-alpha receptor genes of cultured JCML cells demonstrated mRNAs for both. Further, TNF-alpha activity was assayed in a wide variety of cell culture supernatants and in normal and patients' plasma, and only the JCML specimens showed increased TNF-alpha values. Recombinant interleukin-1 alpha (IL-1 alpha) also stimulated JCML colony growth, but polyclonal anti-IL-1 neutralizing antibodies did not suppress JCML colony numbers nor did it reverse the effects of TNF-alpha or GM-CSF. The evidence indicated that the JCML monokine which inhibits normal haematopoiesis is TNF-alpha and that the endogenously-produced TNF-alpha and GM-CSF from JCML cells play an important role in the pathogenesis of the disease by acting as autocrine growth factors. IL-1 alpha also stimulates JCML cell proliferation as an accessory factor and augments the effect of GM-CSF, TNF-alpha or both.

Base Sequence↗

Chromosome 7 abnormalities in children with Down syndrome and preleukemia.

Three children, two boys and one girl, with Down syndrome (DS) who presented with preleukemia and loss of all or part of chromosome 7 were studied. Initial presentation, with cytopenias and less than 25% blasts in the bone marrow, was between 13 and 30 months of age. Progression to acute nonlymphocytic leukemia occurred 1-8 months after initial presentation. The morphologic type was megakaryoblastic in two, and undifferentiated in one. Two children achieved remission with intensive therapy, and one continues in remission off therapy; the other child died in remission of accidental causes. The third child died of respiratory distress and leukemia after no intervention was chosen. These cases represent the first examples of chromosome 7 abnormalities associated with DS and leukemia, and suggest differences from the "monosomy 7" syndrome seen in children without DS.

Child, Preschool↗

Successful allogeneic transplantation of T-cell-depleted bone marrow from closely HLA-matched unrelated donors.

We describe a four-year experience with bone marrow transplantation involving closely HLA-matched unrelated donors and 55 consecutive patients with hematologic disease who were seven months to 48.6 years old (median, 18 years). An intensive pretransplantation conditioning regimen and graft-versus-host disease (GVHD) prophylaxis with CD3-directed T-cell depletion and cyclosporine were employed. Durable engraftment was achieved in 50 of 53 patients who could be evaluated (94 percent; 95 percent confidence interval, 83 to 98 percent). Acute GVHD of Grade II to IV developed in 46 percent of the patients (confidence interval, 27 to 66 percent). The incidence and severity of acute GVHD were increased in recipients of HLA-mismatched marrow as compared with recipients of phenotypically matched marrow (incidence of 53 percent [confidence interval, 37 to 68 percent] vs. 17 percent [confidence interval, 5 to 45 percent]; P less than 0.05). Extensive chronic GVHD and deaths not due to relapse also tended to be more frequent when HLA-mismatched marrow was used, but not significantly so. With a median follow-up of more than 19 months (range, greater than 9 to greater than 39), the actuarial disease-free survival of transplant recipients with leukemia and a relatively good prognosis (acute leukemia in first remission and chronic myelogenous leukemia in chronic phase) was 48 percent (confidence interval, 24 to 73 percent), and that of recipients with more aggressive leukemia was 32 percent (confidence interval, 18 to 51 percent); the actuarial survival of recipients with non-neoplastic disease was 63 percent (confidence interval, 31 to 86 percent). We conclude that marrow transplantation with closely HLA-matched unrelated donors can be effective treatment for neoplastic and non-neoplastic diseases. Although transplants from phenotypically HLA-matched unrelated donors appear to be most effective, transplants with limited HLA disparity can also be successful in some patients.

Adolescent↗

Immunoblastic peripheral T-cell lymphoma confined to bone marrow in an infant presenting with aspergillosis.

A 16-month-old female infant presenting with pancytopenia and fever was found to have pulmonary aspergillosis and large-cell immunoblastic non-Hodgkin's lymphoma of peripheral post-thymic origin isolated to bone marrow. Extensive noninvasive evaluations failed to demonstrate the disease in other extramedullary sites. The malignant cells were large and polymorphous; lacked terminal transferase; expressed surface CD-2, CD-3, CD-8, and HLA-DR antigens, and showed rearrangements of the T-cell-receptor beta-chain gene. To our knowledge, this type of lymphoma in an infant has not been reported before. Furthermore, aspergillosis is a rare presenting feature in patients with lymphoproliferative disease. In our case, it may reflect an underlying immune deficiency associated with the transformation and proliferation of a suppressor T cell.

Aspergillosis↗

Provocative pattern of rearrangements of the genes for the gamma and beta chains of the T-cell receptor in human leukemias.

To examine the distribution of rearrangements of the gamma- and beta-chain T-cell receptor (TCR) genes in T- and non-T acute lymphoblastic leukemias (ALLs), and potentially to determine which genes rearrange first in ontogeny, we analyzed high molecular weight DNA from 102 patients with acute leukemia. Rearranged gamma- and beta-chain genes were found in all T-cell ALLs (22/22) examined. Overall, 27% (18/66) of B-lineage ALLs had beta-chain gene rearrangements, and 41% (24/58) had gamma-chain gene rearrangements, but the distribution of rearranged genes varied according to the stage of B-cell differentiation. The gamma-chain genes were rearranged in 11% (1/9) of the B-lineage patients negative for the common acute lymphoblastic leukemia antigen (cALLA) and 50% (23/46) of cALLA+ ALL patients, while the beta-chain genes were not rearranged in any of the 7 cALLA- ALL patients examined but were rearranged in 32% (18/56) of the cALLA+ patients. Neither TCR gene was found to be rearranged in acute nonlymphoid leukemia patients (0/12) or in patients with B-cell (surface immunoglobulin-positive) leukemia (0/3). Of the 44 cALLA+ patients in which a direct comparison of gamma- and beta-chain gene rearrangements could be made, 34% had both genes rearranged, 16% had only gamma-chain gene rearrangements, and the remaining 50% had both genes in the germ-line configuration. beta-Chain rearrangements have not been found in the absence of gamma-chain rearrangements, thus supporting a proposed hierarchy of TCR gene rearrangements. A provocative finding was that only a small percentage (11%) of the patients with cALLA- B precursor cell ALLs had rearranged TCR genes, while 50% of the cALLA+ leukemia patients had at least gamma-chain rearrangement, raising a question as to whether indeed cALLA- cells are precursors to cALLA+ cells. Interestingly, 18% (2/11) of the cytoplasmic immunoglobulin (cIg)-positive cALLA+ (pre-B) ALLs involved TCR gene rearrangements, compared to 60% (21/35) of the cIg-negative cases, suggesting the possibility that the majority of functional B cells are derived from the cALLA+ pool that contains immunoglobulin but not TCR gene rearrangements.

Adolescent↗

Ocular relapse in the anterior chamber in childhood acute lymphoblastic leukemia.

We reviewed 11 cases of ocular relapse in the anterior chamber in children with acute lymphoblastic leukemia (ALL), representing 0.5% of all primary relapses seen at this center. Nine patients had hypopyon, and two had iris involvement only. Concomitant testicular relapse was present in two children and hematologic relapse in one. Ocular relapse occurred at 12 to 74 months (median, 36 months) from the data of initial diagnosis. Children who relapsed after therapy was discontinued did so within 1 year of completing therapy. Topical steroids and systemic chemotherapy were administered to all patients with ocular relapse; four also received radiation to the involved eye (600 to 1,050 cGy). Four children, each with a prolonged initial complete remission, remain free of disease for 15+, 32+, 34+, and 145+ months following anterior chamber relapse; three had received radiation therapy. Five patients died of recurrent leukemia, and two of infection while in remission. Aggressive retreatment appears warranted in cases of anterior chamber relapse of ALL, as some of these children may attain prolonged new remissions.

Adolescent↗