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Biomedical subjects

S Giralt

Publications and source records attributed to S Giralt.

At least 109 records · Page 6Linked to original sources

Use of octreotide in the symptomatic management of diarrhea induced by graft-versus-host disease in patients with hematologic malignancies.

PURPOSE: Diarrhea associated with acute gastrointestinal (GI) graft-versus-host disease (GVHD) after allogeneic bone marrow transplantation (BMT) can result in severe morbidity and mortality. A pilot study was conducted to evaluate the efficacy and toxicity of octreotide in the management of diarrhea in patients with GVHD after allogeneic BMT. PATIENTS AND METHODS: Twenty-one patients entered the study. Patients received either peripheral-blood stem cells (n = 13) or bone marrow (n = 8). Seven patients had grade 4, 13 grade 3, and one grade 2 GVHD. Intravenous (I.V.) octreotide 500 microg every 8 hours for 7 days was administered. Octreotide treatment was discontinued if no response was observed after 7 days or for grade 4 toxicity. RESULTS: Fifteen (71%) of 21 treated patients had a complete response within 7 days of the initiation of octreotide; three (14%) had a partial response and three (14%) failed to respond to treatment. Toxicities were minimal; hyperglycemia was seen in four patients and one patient developed a partial ileus. Octreotide was discontinued and the ileus resolved within 48 hours. CONCLUSION: If initiated early in the course of GI GVHD, octreotide appears to be an effective, well-tolerated agent in reducing severe voluminous diarrhea. Octreotide should be discontinued within 24 hours after the resolution of diarrhea to avoid the development of ileus. Because no additional reduction in the volume of diarrhea occurred after 7 days of therapy, continuation of the drug beyond this time is not cost effective.

Adult↗

Donor leukocyte infusions in 140 patients with relapsed malignancy after allogeneic bone marrow transplantation.

PURPOSE: Recipients of allogeneic bone marrow transplants (BMTs) who have relapsed may attain complete remissions when treated with transfusions of leukocytes obtained from the original bone marrow donor. We performed a retrospective study to characterize better this new treatment modality. PATIENTS AND METHODS: We surveyed 25 North American BMT programs regarding their use of donor leukocyte infusions (DLI). Detailed forms were used to gather data regarding the original BMT, relapse, DLI, response to DLI, complications of DLI, and long-term follow-up evaluation. Reports of 140 patients were thus available for analysis. RESULTS: Complete responses were observed in 60% (95% confidence interval [CI], 51.9% to 68.1%) of chronic myelogenous leukemia (CML) patients who received DLI and did not receive pre-DLI chemotherapy; response rates were higher in patients with cytogenetic and chronic-phase relapse (75.7%; 95% CI, 68.2% to 83.2%) than in patients with accelerated-phase (33.3%; 95% CI, 19.7% to 46.9%) or blastic-phase (16.7%; 95% CI, 1.9% to 31.9%) relapse. The actuarial probability of remaining in complete remission at 2 years was 89.6%. Complete remission rates in acute myelogenous leukemia (AML) (n = 39) and acute lymphocytic leukemia (ALL) (n = 11) patients who had not received pre-DLI chemotherapy were 15.4% (95% CI, 9.6% to 21.2%) and 18.2% (95% CI, 6.6% to 29.8%), respectively. Complete remissions were also observed in two of four assessable myeloma patients and two of five assessable myelodysplasia patients. Complications of DLI included acute graft-versus-host disease (GVHD) (60%; 95% CI, 51.4% to 68.6%), chronic GVHD (60.7%; 95% CI, 50.3% to 71.1%), and pancytopenia (18.6%; 95% CI, 12.2% to 25.0%). Pre-DLI characteristics predictive of complete response in CML patients were post-BMT chronic GVHD, pre-DLI disease status of chronic phase, and time interval between BMT to DLI less than 2 years. Acute and chronic GVHD post-DLI were highly correlated with disease response (P < .00001). CONCLUSION: DLI results in complete remissions in a high percentage of patients with relapsed chronic-phase CML. Complete remissions are observed less frequently in patients with advanced CML and acute leukemia. GVHD and pancytopenia occur commonly; GVHD is highly correlated with response.

Actuarial Analysis↗

Phase I trial of cyclosporine-induced autologous graft-versus-host disease in patients with multiple myeloma undergoing high-dose chemotherapy with autologous stem-cell rescue.

PURPOSE: To determine the feasibility and toxicity of inducing autologous graft-versus-host disease (GVHD) with cyclosporine in patients with multiple myeloma undergoing autologous stem-cell transplantation. PATIENTS AND METHODS: Fourteen multiple myeloma patients with a median age of 50 years (range, 41 to 63) were enrolled. The median time from diagnosis to transplant was 651 days (range, 229 to 3,353). Ten patients had primary refractory disease, two were in first remission, and two were responsive to salvage therapy. The preparative regimen consisted of thiotepa, busulfan, and cyclophosphamide. Cyclosporine was administered daily for 28 days after the stem-cell infusion, and the dose was adjusted to maintain whole-blood cyclosporine levels between 50 and 150 ng/dL in the first seven patients (low-level group) and between 150 and 300 ng/dL in the other seven patients (high-level group). RESULTS: All patients achieved neutrophil engraftment a median of 11 days after transplant. Four patients developed > or = grade 2 hepatic toxicity, six developed > or = grade 2 nephrotoxicity, and four developed reversible cardiac toxicity. Only one treatment-related death occurred. Cyclosporine was withheld in seven patients for a median of 6 days because of renal and/or liver dysfunction. One patient developed clinical skin GVHD, which responded to corticosteroid therapy. Six patients developed histologic evidence of GVHD without clinical signs of GVHD (subclinical GVHD). The incidence of clinical and subclinical GVHD was similar in both cyclosporine groups. Three of 11 patients assessable for response achieved remissions. Three patients experienced disease progression 80, 160, and 354 days after transplant. Ten patients are alive without progression between 56 and 444 days after transplant. CONCLUSION: Induction of autologous GVHD by posttransplant cyclosporine is feasible and well tolerated in patients with multiple myeloma.

Adult↗

Analysis of chimerism following allogeneic bone marrow transplantation by fluorescent-in-situ hybridization.

Twelve patients (9 males and 3 females) with chronic myelogenous leukemia, underwent CD8+ T cell depleted allogeneic bone marrow transplantation with a sex-mismatched donor. To assess chimerism we performed fluorescent in-situ hybridization for the X and Y chromosome at different time points after BMT. Patient median age was 33 years (range, 27-48); median time to transplant was 28 months (range, 5-87). All patients received thiotepa 10 mg/kg; cyclophosphamide 120 mg/kg and 12.0 Gy of fractionated total body irradiation. CD8+ cells were depleted from the normal donor marrow with anti-CD8 murine monoclonal antibodies and immunomagnetic beads. Bone marrow aspirates were studied at <60, 60-140, 140-300, and >300 days post BMT. Hybridization was done on mononuclear cells and a median of 518 cells were counted per slide with a fluorescent microscope. The median percentage of donor cells was 99.04%, 98.21%, 98.15%, and 99.52% at <60, 60-140, 140-300, and >300 days after BMT. Mixed chimerism was a rare occurrence after CD8 depleted allogeneic BMT and occured only at low levels. Inhibition of repopulation by host hematopoietic cells may be associated with the graft-versus-leukemia effect against CML.

Adult↗

Studies of decitabine with allogeneic progenitor cell transplantation.

The aim was to determine the efficacy and safety of decitabine in the settings of relapse post-allogeneic progenitor cell transplantation or as part of the conditioning regimen. Three patients (two AML, one ALL) received single agent decitabine 1000 mg/m2 total dose) for treatment of relapse post-transplant (group 1). Median age was 32 years. Median time to relapse was 7 months. In another study four patients (three CML in an accelerated phase, one AMML) received decitabine 400 mg/m2, with busulfan 12 mg/kg and cyclophosphamide 100 mg/kg as conditioning for allogeneic stem cell transplantation (group 2). Median age was 42 years; median time to transplant was 5 months. All patients received at least 4 x 10(6) CD34+ cells from their HLA compatible donors. All patients in group 1 achieved complete remissions after decitabine therapy. The median time to neutrophil and platelet recovery were 24 and 23 days, respectively. Two patients required reinfusion of donor cells because of delayed engraftment. One patient remains alive and in remission 160 days post-decitabine therapy. Two patients in group 2 engrafted on days 23 and 25. Two patients required reinfusion of stem cells because of lack of neutrophil recovery by day 21. Two patients achieved complete cytogenetic and hematologic remission. Three patients are alive at 167,129, and 109 days post-transplant. One patient died of progressive Pseudomonas cellulitis 54 days post-initial infusion. Decitabine therapy is well tolerated in the setting of allogeneic stem cell transplantation, initial results in patients relapsing after transplant are encouraging and warrant further studies. The causes of delayed engraftment after single agent or combination therapy need to be better explored. The existence of active metabolites of decitabine which may still be present in the blood at the time of stem cell infusions, and/or insufficient immunosuppression of the preparative regimen are being explored as possible explanations for this phenomenon.

Adult↗

The impact of T-cell depletion on the effects of HLA DR beta 1 and DQ beta allele matching in HLA serologically identical unrelated donor bone marrow transplantation.

Unrelated donor bone marrow transplants have been associated with relatively high rates of acute graft-vs.-host disease and treatment-related mortality. These complications reflect histo-incompatibility between donor and recipient. Molecular technology has recently been applied to HLA typing to identify alleles not distinguishable with serologic typing techniques. We report results in 92 unrelated marrow transplant recipients who were HLA seroidentical with donor HLA-A, -B, and -DR antigens and assess the effect of DR beta 1 and DQ beta compatibility using sequence specific oligonucleotide primers. Forty-eight patients received T-cell depleted marrow grafts, and 44 received unmodified grafts. Among recipients of unmodified marrow grafts, matching for both DR beta 1 and DQ beta reduced the rate of grade 3-4 acute graft-vs.-host disease to 38 +/- 20% vs. 73 +/- 20% among recipients mismatched for either allele (p = 0.02). This difference was not observed in recipients of T-cell depleted marrow grafts. Multivariate analysis confirmed matching for both DR beta 1 and DQ beta loci (p = 0.015), and receiving a T-cell depleted graft (p = 0.008) independently predicted for reduced risk of grade 3-4 acute graft-vs.-host disease. In conclusion, both DR beta 1 and DQ beta appear biologically important for development of acute graft-vs.-host disease in patients receiving unmanipulated marrow grafts for unrelated donor transplant.

Adult↗

Allogeneic transplantation for recurrent or refractory non-Hodgkin's lymphoma with poor prognostic features after conditioning with thiotepa, busulfan, and cyclophosphamide: experience in 44 consecutive patients.

We report the outcomes of 44 consecutive patients with non-Hodgkin's lymphoma (NHL) who participated in prospective studies of allogeneic transplantation after conditioning with thiotepa, busulfan and cyclophosphamide. Within a range of 27-57 years, the median age was 37. Of the 44 patients, 12 (27.2%) had high-grade lymphomas, 27 (61.4%) had intermediate-grade lymphomas, and five (11.3%) had low-grade lymphomas. Twenty-eight (63.6%) patients had chemotherapy refractory disease. Thirty (68.2%) patients had stage IV disease at the time of transplantation, involving the bone marrow in 19 (43.2%). Eight (18.1%) patients had undergone previous transplantation, and 13 (29.5%) patients had received high-dose CVP as induction within 2 months prior to transplantation. Thirty-eight (86.3%) patients had an HLA-identical donor, and 6 (13.6%) had a one-antigen mismatched related donor. Twenty (45.4%) patients received bone marrow and 24 (54.6%) received granulocyte colony-stimulating factor (G-CSF) mobilized stem cells. The graft-versus-host disease (GVHD) prophylaxis contained cyclosporine or tacrolimus in combination with either methylprednisolone in 32 (72.7%) patients or with methotrexate in 12 (27.2%) patients. The actuarial probability of disease-free survival at 2 years is 23% (95% CI 13%-40%). Donor stem cell use was associated with a significantly decreased risk of treatment-related toxicity (p < 0.001), but with an increased risk for GVHD and delayed fungal and viral infections. These infections are linked not only to the use of donor-stem cells, but also to the methylprednisolone in the GVHD prophylaxis regimen. Improvements in the outcome of patients with advanced NHL and undergoing allogeneic transplantation will depend on the development of effective and non-toxic regimens for conditioning, GVHD prophylaxis, and opportunistic infections prophylaxis.

Adult↗

Allogeneic transplantation for advanced leukemia: improved short-term outcome with blood stem cell grafts and tacrolimus.

We have evaluated the use of blood stem cell grafts for rapid hematopoietic recovery and tacrolimus (FK506) as GVHD prophylaxis to reduce early mortality after allogeneic transplantation. Eighty-five adults with advanced leukemia received high-dose thiotepa, busulfan, and cyclophosphamide as a preparative regimen in a prospective Phase II study. All donors were HLA-matched and related. Marrow (BMT) was used for 44 patients and filgrastim-mobilized blood stem cells (SCT) for 41 patients. GVHD prophylaxis consisted of cyclosporine (CsA) or FK506 with methotrexate (MTX) or methylprednisolone (MP). The median time to neutrophil recovery was earlier after SCT than after BMT (day 10 vs. 17, P<0.001), but this was due to the selective use of MTX only in the BMT patients. The risk of grades 2-4 GVHD was lower with FK506 than with CsA (16% vs. 45%, P=0.02) and was the same for SCT recipients as for BMT recipients (33% vs. 34%). Regimen-related toxicity was significantly lower after SCT than after BMT but did not differ between the FK506 and CsA patients. In comparison with those receiving the standard transplant (BMT with CsA and MTX), only the SCT recipients using FK506 and MP had a significantly higher survival at day 180 posttransplant (84% vs. 53%, P=0.014). In multivariate analyses, use of FK506 was associated with a lower risk of treatment-related mortality and a higher survival at day 180, while the diagnosis of acute lymphoblastic leukemia was associated with a higher risk of treatment-related mortality. These data suggest that the use of blood stem cell grafts and FK506 can reduce the early mortality after allogeneic transplantation for advanced leukemia.

Adolescent↗

Tacrolimus and minidose methotrexate for prevention of acute graft-versus-host disease after matched unrelated donor marrow transplantation.

Thirty adults with leukemia or lymphoma undergoing marrow transplantation from HLA-compatible unrelated donors received tacrolimus (FK506), a new immunosuppressive macrolide lactone, and minidose methotrexate to prevent acute graft-versus-host disease (GVHD). The group had a median age of 36 years (range 21 to 49 years). Twenty-four patients had advanced disease, and 11 were resistant to conventional therapy. Tacrolimus was administered at 0.03 mg/kg/d intravenously (i.v.) by continuous infusion from day -2, converted to oral at four times the i.v. dose following engraftment, and continued through day 180 posttransplant. Methotrexate 5 mg/m2 was given i.v. on days 1, 3, 6, and 11. All patients engrafted. Grades 2-4 GVHD occurred in 34% (95% CI, 17% to 52%), and grades 3-4 GVHD in 17% (95% CI, 3% to 31%). Mild renal toxicity was common before day 100; 63% of patients had a doubling of creatinine, and 52% had a peak creatinine greater than 2 mg/dL, but only one patient was dialyzed. The median last i.v. dose of tacrolimus was 53% of the scheduled dose, and the median oral dose on day 100 was 41% of that scheduled. Overall survival at 1 year was 47% (95% CI, 27% to 66%). We conclude that tacrolimus can be combined safely with minidose methotrexate, and the combination has substantial activity in preventing acute GVHD after unrelated donor marrow transplantation.

Actuarial Analysis↗

T cells, graft-versus-host disease and graft-versus-leukemia: innovative approaches for blood and marrow transplantation.

Allogeneic bone marrow transplantation is most commonly used as treatment for leukemia. Allotransplantation is associated with several interrelated immunologic processes, graft rejection, graft-versus-host disease (GvHD) and graft versus leukemia (GvL). Graft rejection can be overcome by intensive pretransplant immunosuppressive therapy. Following transplantation, immunoreconstitution must occur from donor-derived progenitors and GvHD may occur from reactivity of donor-derived immunocompetent cells against host tissues. In a related, but distinct process, donor immunocompetent cells may react against the recipient leukemia and recent data confirm that this GvL effect plays a critical role in preventing posttransplant relapse. This report summarizes present data regarding the mechanism of these processes. A major challenge is to separate the beneficial GvL effect from GvHD, the major complication of allogeneic marrow transplantation. We summarize data regarding innovative approaches to modify the composition of the transplanted marrow to optimize clinical outcome as well as use of donor lymphocyte infusions as a means to induce posttransplant GvL.

Bone Marrow Transplantation↗

Impact of preexisting CNS involvement on the outcome of bone marrow transplantation in adult hematologic malignancies.

PURPOSE: To determine the impact of prior or current CNS disease on the outcome of high-dose chemotherapy for patients with hematologic malignancies. PATIENTS AND METHODS: In a 54-month period, 373 patients with hematologic malignancies underwent allogeneic or autologous bone marrow transplantation (BMT) or blood stem-cell transplantation using high-dose thiotepa, busulfan, and cyclophosphamide (TBC) as the preparative regimen. Four patients with active CNS disease at BMT and 20 patients with a history of prior CNS disease were identified. The outcomes of those with a history of CNS disease were compared with those of a matched control group. RESULTS: Of four patients with active CNS disease at the time of BMT, two had CNS recurrences and one recurred in the bone marrow. One patient died of treatment-related toxicity. Four of 20 patients with prior CNS involvement currently remain free of disease. At 2 years, the disease-free survival (DFS) rate was 23% +/- 19%, and the DFS rate for the control group 39% +/- 24% (P = .053). An increased rate of treatment-related toxicity and especially grades II to IV CNS toxicity accounted for the poorer outcome of patients who had a history of CNS disease. Recurrence rates were not significantly different between the two groups. Prior radiation to the CNS correlated with CNS complications posttransplant (p = .01). CONCLUSION: Consolidation with TBC and BMT can induce prolonged DFS in a proportion of patients with a history of CNS disease. Such patients are at increased risk for CNS complications that lead to an inferior overall outcome when compared with a control group.

Adolescent↗

Results with high-dose chemotherapy and unpurged autologous stem cell transplantation in 73 patients with chronic myelogenous leukemia: the MD Anderson experience.

The purpose of this study was to evaluate the effectiveness of unpurged autologous stem cell transplantation (ASCT) for chronic myelogenous leukemia (CML) and its impact on the survival of patients in first and late chronic phase (CML-CP) including those resistant to or unable to tolerate interferon alfa (IFN-alpha) therapy. Between 1982 and 1993, 73 patients with CML who underwent ASCT were evaluated. Twenty-eight patients had signs of transformation, 20 were in second or subsequent CP, 22 had CML-CP and had shown resistance to or were unable to tolerate IFN-alpha therapy, and there had Philadelphia (Ph) chromosome-negative CML. Survival of patients in CML-CP who underwent ASCT was compared to controls who were in first CP receiving INF-a therapy. Patients and controls were matched for age, decade of therapy, response to IFN-alpha therapy (resistance vs toxicity) and the time to ASCT (study group) vs time to resistance (control group). Nine 12% patients failed to achieve hematologic recovery, and five (7%) had early death secondary to toxicity. Twenty-seven (58%) patients who received transplants in advanced-stage CML and 18 (82%) transplanted in CML-CP achieved complete hematologic remission (CHR). The incidence of complete cytogenetic response was 10 and 14%, respectively. The median survival of these two groups of patients was 5 and 34 months, respectively (P < 0.001). However, the survival of patients in CML-CP was not significantly different from controls (34 vs 49 months; P = 0.17). We conclude that unpurged ASCT does not prolong the survival of patients in CML-CP who are resistant to IFN-alpha therapy. Progress in autotransplantation in CML might require innovative approaches to eradicate the leukemic cells from the autologous stem cells prior to transplants.

Adolescent↗

Graft-versus-leukemia effect after allogeneic bone marrow transplantation for chronic lymphocytic leukemia.

We report the case of a patient with chronic lymphocytic leukemia (CLL) with persistent lymphocytosis and lymphadenopathy after allogeneic bone marrow transplantation (BMT). After receiving a donor lymphocyte infusion on day 87 he achieved complete remission upon development of chronic graft-versus-host disease, suggesting that a graft-versus-leukemia effect is operative in this malignancy.

Adult↗

Delayed effects of rhG-CSF mobilization treatment and apheresis on circulating CD34+ and CD34+ Thy-1dim CD38- progenitor cells, and lymphoid subsets in normal stem cell donors for allogeneic transplantation.

Allogeneic transplantation of peripheral blood progenitor cells (PBPC) is emerging as a new stem cell transplant modality. Rather than undergoing general anesthesia for bone marrow harvest, normal blood stem cell donors are subjected to rhG-CSF mobilization treatment followed by single or multiple apheresis. Whereas the effects of cytokine treatment and apheresis on stem cell peripheralization and collection have been described, little is known about delayed effects of rhG-CSF treatment and apheresis on a normal hematopoietic system, and there are no long-term data that address safety issues. Ten normal, patient-related donors underwent a 3 or 4 day rhG-CSF (filgrastim) treatment (12 micrograms/kg/day) followed by single or tandem apheresis. We monitored peripheral blood (PB) cellularity including CD34+ and lymphoid subsets at baseline, during cytokine treatment, prior to apheresis, and at days 2, 4, 7, 30 and 100 post-apheresis. The PB progenitor cell concentration peak prior to apheresis was followed by a nadir by day 7 and normalized by day 30, with the exception of the most primitive CD34+ Thy-1dim CD38- progenitor subset that reached a nadir by day 30. Lymphoid subsets such as CD3, 4, 8, suppressor cells (CD3+ 4- 8- TCR+ alpha beta), and B cells (CD19+) showed a similar pattern with a nadir concentration by day 7, followed, except for B cells, by a rebound by day 30 and subnormal counts at day 100. The PB concentrations of hemoglobin and platelets dropped mainly due to the apheresis procedure itself, and normalized by day 30. With cytokine treatment, the PB alkaline phosphatase and lactate dehydrogenase concentrations increased 2.2- and 2.8-fold, respectively, over baseline, and returned to normal range by day 30. Based on the preliminary nature of this study, the clinical relevance of these findings is still unclear.

ADP-ribosyl Cyclase↗

CD8-depleted donor lymphocyte infusion as treatment for relapsed chronic myelogenous leukemia after allogeneic bone marrow transplantation.

Donor lymphocyte infusions can reinduce complete remission in the majority of patients with chronic myelogenous leukemia (CML) who relapse into chronic phase after allogeneic bone marrow transplantation (BMT). Such infusions are associated with a high incidence of graft-versus-host disease (GVHD) and marrow aplasia. BMT using selective depletion of CD8+ lymphocytes from donor cells reduces the incidence of GVHD without an increase in leukemia relapse. We hypothesized that infusion of CD8-depleted donor peripheral blood lymphocytes could also reinduce complete remissions with a lesser potential to produce symptomatic GVHD in patients with CML who relapsed after allogeneic BMT. Ten patients with Ph(+) CML who relapsed a median of 353 days after BMT (range, 82 to 1,096 days) received donor lymphocyte infusions depleted of CD8+ cells. Nine patients received a single infusion and 1 received two infusions. Four patients were treated while in chronic phase with clonal evolution, 2 during accelerated phase, 3 during blast crisis, and 1 in a cytogenetic relapse. A mean of 0.9 +/- 0.3 x 10(8) mononuclear cells/kg were infused, containing 0.6 +/- 0.4 x 10(6) CD3+CD8+ cells/kg. Six patients achieved hematologic and cytogenetic remission at 4, 8, 11, 15, 39, and 54 weeks after lymphocyte infusion. Two patients developed > or = grade II acute GVHD, and 1 patient developed mild chronic GVHD. We conclude that donor lymphocyte infusions depleted of CD8+ cells can induce remissions with a low rate of severe acute GVHD in patients with CML who relapse after allogeneic BMT, supporting the hypothesis that CD8+ lymphocytes are important effectors of GVHD, but may not be essential for the graft-versus-leukemia effect against this disease. Further controlled studies are required to confirm these preliminary observations.

Acute Disease↗

Percentage of Philadelphia chromosome (Ph)-negative and Ph-positive cells found after autologous transplantation for chronic myelogenous leukemia depends on percentage of diploid cells induced by conventional-dose chemotherapy before collection of autologous cells.

We collected peripheral blood mononuclear cells and bone marrow cells soon after recovery from conventional-dose chemotherapy-induced myelosuppression and transplanted these cells into advanced chronic myelogenous leukemia (CML) patients after treating these patients with 120 mg/kg cyclophosphamide, 750 mg/m2 VP-16, and 1,020 cGy of total body irradiation (TBI). Of the 10 late chronic-phase patients and the eight accelerated-phase CML patients evaluable posttransplant, 90% and 87%, respectively, remain alive posttransplant, whereas none of the three blast crisis CML patients given this therapy remain alive posttransplant. We measured the percentage of Philadelphia chromosome (Ph)-negative cells in the autologous cells collected after conventional-dose chemotherapy-induced myelosuppression before autologous transplant and in the marrow of these same CML patients after autologous transplantation of these cells into recipients treated with the cyclophosphamide, VP-16, and TBI. A direct correlation (correlation coefficient = 0.91) was observed between the level of Ph+ cells in the transplanted cells and the percentage of Ph+ marrow cells after transplant in 21 patients so transplanted. The data show that the chance of generating cytogenetic remissions post-transplant depends on the percentage of diploid cells in the preparations of autologous cells used for transplant and the stage of disease of the patients at the time of collection of the autologous cells.

Adult↗