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Introduction/BackgroundRe-irradiation of local recurrences of gynaecological cancer pose a difficult challenge to Oncologist. For their biological and physical characteristics particle therapy (PT) could be an interesting treatment.MethodologyThe aim of the study was to evaluate the feasibility and early clinical outcome in patients (pts) with gynaecological pelvic sidewall recurrence (PSWr). Between May 2014 to December 2018, 10 patients (median age 56) with PSWr within or at the edge of the previously irradiated field were treated using PT. They had recurrence of: cervical (5), endometrial (3), uterine (1) and ovarian (1) cancer. Previous radiotherapy prescription dose ranged from 46 to 59.4 Gy and 5 patients underwent brachytherapy (range: 7–28 Gy).Two patients, with marginal lymph node recurrence, were irradiated with protons with up to a total dose of 25 GyRBE and 51 GyRBE, respectively. The remaining women underwent carbon-ion radiotherapy (median total dose 50.4 GyRBE; range: 36–57) administered in a median number of 12 fractions. Six patients with PSWr received surgical spacer placement by open surgery to keep intestinal tracts apart from the tumour as the distance between tumour and nearest intestinal tracts was not sufficient. No pts received concurrent chemotherapy. Preliminary local control (LC) and toxicity profile (according to CTCAE V4.03 scale) were evaluated.ResultsAll patients completed the planned treatment and no acute toxicities G>2 were observed. For the evaluable patients, 1 case of intermediate G≥3 toxicity was reported in women received sequential Bevacizumab (BV). For pts with a follow-up ≥3 months, median LC was 7 months (range: 3–14), median MFS was 4.5 months (range: 3–14,5) and median OS was 7 months (range: 3–14,5). 1 pt experienced local progression and 4 pts died for systemic progression. Data are still ongoing.ConclusionFor pts with PSWr a PT approach seems to be feasible and our results showed a promising short-term outcome and limited radiation-related side effects. Longer follow-up and large patient accrual are required.DisclosureNothing to disclose.

Hemolytic anemias, which are rare, are often caused by autoimmune destruction of red cells. The hemolysis can be intravascular or extravascular. In general, IgG mediates warm antibody–induced hemolysis, and IgM cold antibody–induced hemolysis. Immunosuppression is the main treatment.

Autoimmune hemolytic anemia (AIHA) is a greatly heterogeneous disease due to autoantibodies directed against erythrocytes, with or without complement activation. The clinical picture ranges from mild/compensated to life-threatening anemia, depending on the antibody's thermal amplitude, isotype and ability to fix complement, as well as on bone marrow compensation. Since few years ago, steroids, immunesuppressants and splenectomy have been the mainstay of treatment. More recently, several target therapies are increasingly used in the clinical practice or are under development in clinical trials. This has led to the accumulation of refractory/relapsed cases that often represent a clinical challenge. Moreover, the availability of several drugs acting on the different pathophysiologic mechanisms of the disease pinpoints the need to harness therapy. In particular, it is advisable to define the best choice, sequence and/or combination of drugs during the different phases of the disease. In particular relapsed/refractory cases may resemble pre-myelodysplastic or bone marrow failure syndromes, suggesting a careful use of immunosuppressants, and vice versa advising bone marrow immunomodulating/stimulating agents. A peculiar setting is AIHA after autologous and allogeneic hematopoietic stem cell transplantation, which is increasingly reported. These cases are generally severe and refractory to standard therapy, and have high mortality. AIHAs may be primary/idiopathic or secondary to infections, autoimmune diseases, malignancies, particularly lymphoproliferative disorders, and drugs, further complicating their clinical picture and management. Regarding new drugs, the false positivity of the Coombs test (direct antiglobulin test, DAT) following daratumumab adds to the list of difficult diagnosis, together with the passenger lymphocyte syndrome after solid organ transplants. Diagnosis of DAT-negative AIHAs and evaluation of disease-related risk factors for relapse and mortality, notwithstanding improvement in diagnostic approach, are still an unmet need. Finally, AIHA is increasingly described following therapy of solid cancers with inhibitors of immune checkpoint molecules. On the whole, the double-edged sword of new pathogenetic insights and therapies has changed the landscape of AIHA, both providing enthusiastic knowledge and complicating the clinical management of this disease.

Cold agglutinin disease is a type of autoimmune hemolytic anemia. A total of 17 of 24 patients (71%) with cold agglutinin disease who received sutimlimab (a monoclonal antibody that targets the C1s protein, which activates the classic complement pathway) were transfusion-free at the end of the study.

In this large single-centre study, we report high prevalence (25%) of, small (<10%) and very small (<1%), paroxysmal nocturnal hemoglobinuria (PNH) clones by high-sensitive cytometry among 3085 patients tested. Given PNH association with bone marrow failures, we analyzed 869 myelodysplastic syndromes (MDS) and 531 aplastic anemia (AA) within the cohort. PNH clones were more frequent and larger in AA vs. MDS ( p  = 0.04). PNH clone, irrespective of size, was a good predictor of response to immunosuppressive therapy (IST) and to stem cell transplant (HSCT) (in MDS: 84% if PNH+ vs. 44.7% if PNH−, p  = 0.01 for IST, and 71% if PNH+ vs. 56.6% if PNH− for HSCT; in AA: 78 vs. 50% for IST, p  < 0.0001, and 97 vs. 77%, p  = 0.01 for HSCT). PNH positivity had a favorable impact on disease progression (0.6% vs. 4.9% IPSS-progression in MDS, p  < 0.005; and 2.1 vs. 6.9% progression to MDS in AA, p  = 0.01), leukemic evolution (6.8 vs. 12.7%, p  = 0.01 in MDS), and overall survival [73% (95% CI 68–77) vs. 51% (48–54), p  < 0.0001], with a relative HR for mortality of 2.37 (95% CI 1.8–3.1; p  < 0.0001) in PNH negative cases, both in univariate and multivariable analysis. Our data suggest systematic PNH testing in AA/MDS, as it might allow better prediction/prognostication and consequent clinical/laboratory follow-up timing.

In this study, approximately half the patients with red-cell pyruvate kinase deficiency who were treated with mitapivat had an improvement in their hemoglobin level and decreased hemolysis that was sustained for nearly 3 years. Patients who had missense mutations that allowed for synthesis of a hypofunctioning enzyme were most likely to have a response.

Pyruvate kinase deficiency is a rare, hereditary, chronic condition that is associated with hemolytic anemia. In a phase 2 study, mitapivat, an oral, first-in-class activator of erythrocyte pyruvate kinase, increased the hemoglobin level in patients with pyruvate kinase deficiency. In this global, phase 3, randomized, placebo-controlled trial, we evaluated the efficacy and safety of mitapivat in adults with pyruvate kinase deficiency who were not receiving regular red-cell transfusions. The patients were assigned to receive either mitapivat (5 mg twice daily, with potential escalation to 20 or 50 mg twice daily) or placebo for 24 weeks. The primary end point was a hemoglobin response (an increase from baseline of ≥1.5 g per deciliter in the hemoglobin level) that was sustained at two or more scheduled assessments at weeks 16, 20, and 24. Secondary efficacy end points were the average change from baseline in the hemoglobin level, markers of hemolysis and hematopoiesis, and the change from baseline at week 24 in two pyruvate kinase deficiency-specific patient-reported outcome measures. Sixteen of the 40 patients (40%) in the mitapivat group had a hemoglobin response, as compared with none of the 40 patients in the placebo group (adjusted difference, 39.3 percentage points; 95% confidence interval, 24.1 to 54.6; two-sided P<0.001). Patients who received mitapivat had a greater response than those who received placebo with respect to each secondary end point, including the average change from baseline in the hemoglobin level. The most common adverse events were nausea (in 7 patients [18%] in the mitapivat group and 9 patients [23%] in the placebo group) and headache (in 6 patients [15%] and 13 patients [33%], respectively). Adverse events of grade 3 or higher occurred in 10 patients (25%) who received mitapivat and 5 patients (13%) who received placebo. In patients with pyruvate kinase deficiency, mitapivat significantly increased the hemoglobin level, decreased hemolysis, and improved patient-reported outcomes. No new safety signals were identified in the patients who received mitapivat. (Funded by Agios Pharmaceuticals; ACTIVATE ClinicalTrials.gov number, NCT03548220.).

Autoimmune hemolytic anemia (AIHA) is defined by increased erythrocyte turnover mediated by autoimmune mechanisms. While corticosteroids remain first-line therapy in most cases of warm-antibody AIHA, cold agglutinin disease is treated by targeting the underlying clonal B-cell proliferation or the classical complement activation pathway. Several new established or investigational drugs and treatment regimens have appeared during the last 1-2 decades, resulting in an improvement of therapy options but also raising challenges on how to select the best treatment in individual patients. In severe warm-antibody AIHA, there is evidence for the upfront addition of rituximab to prednisolone in the first line. Novel agents targeting B-cells, extravascular hemolysis, or removing IgG will offer further options in the acute and relapsed/refractory settings. In cold agglutinin disease, the development of complement inhibitors and B-cell targeting agents makes it possible to individualize therapy, based on the disease profile and patient characteristics. For most AIHAs, the optimal treatment remains to be found, and there is still a need for more evidence-based therapies. Therefore, prospective clinical trials should be encouraged.