Hematologic Oncology

In this interview we discuss the role of the tumor microenvironment in Hodgkin and non-Hodgkin lymphoma and research that seeks to disrupt and target this environment as a means of treatment.

Ahead of the 57th ASH Annual Meeting & Exposition, December December 5–8, 2015, Nitin Jain, MD, discusses the cost burden associated with targeted therapy use in the CLL population.

Ahead of the 57th ASH Annual Meeting & Exposition, December 5–8, 2015, Jeffrey Tyner, PhD, discusses his latest research on screening tumor cells derived from cancer patients to help guide better treatment decisions.

Chemotherapy plus lenalidomide was shown to be inferior to high-dose melphalan and ASCT in transplant-eligible patients with newly diagnosed multiple myeloma.

Adding elotuzumab to lenalidomide and dexamethasone for the treatment of relapsed or refractory multiple myeloma appears to result in better efficacy and safety.

A case study of a 15-year-old CML patient suggests that a reduced intensity conditioning regimen following hematopoietic stem cell transplantation could be a good treatment option for young CML patients. The patient went on to have two pregnancies with no neonatal complications.

The FDA approved the proteasome inhibitor ixazomib, in combination with lenalidomide and dexamethasone, to be used as a second-line treatment in multiple myeloma.

PEG-asparaginase had both similar safety and efficacy to intramuscular native E coli l-asparaginase for the treatment of children with ALL in complete remission.

An increased risk for coronary heart disease was found with increasing mean heart dose of radiation in survivors of Hodgkin lymphoma.

Results from the phase II SORAML trial indicated that adding sorafenib to standard chemotherapy for younger patients with acute myeloid leukemia was effective, but also resulted in increased toxicity.

Many chronic myeloid leukemia patients who discontinue second-line dasatinib maintain a deep molecular response, according to a new study.

The presence of the gene KIR2DL5B was found to be associated with outcomes in patients with chronic phase chronic myeloid leukemia, according to a new study.

The use of reduced-intensity conditioning HSCT as a method to maintain remission was effective in a select group of older patients with acute myeloid leukemia.

The risk for end-stage renal disease that required renal replacement therapy due to multiple myeloma appears to have declined significantly between 2001 and 2010.

In Hodgkin lymphoma survivors, both mean heart radiation dose and cumulative dose of anthracyclines significantly predicted cardiovascular disease.

In patients with chronic myeloid leukemia (CML), a prospective, long-term study has found that hematopoietic stem cell transplantation (HSCT) and drug therapy yielded similar 10-year survival outcomes.

The combination of chemotherapy with the TKI ponatinib was an effective treatment for patients with newly diagnosed Ph-positive acute lymphoblastic leukemia.

The treatment of follicular lymphoma has changed dramatically over the past several years. The availability of newer, novel forms of therapy has enabled the field to continue to evolve. In addition to having tumor-specific activity, these newer agents provide the possibility of a more favorable toxicity profile than conventional chemotherapy.

The treatment of patients with follicular lymphoma is undergoing a substantial shift due to rapid development of highly effective agents targeting lymphoma-specific biologic processes and the tumor microenvironment.

A novel regimen of carfilzomib, pomalidomide, and dexamethasone was highly active in a group of heavily pretreated patients with relapsed or refractory multiple myeloma.

Allogeneic HSCT may be the best treatment option in older patients with acute myeloid leukemia who obtain first complete remission after induction chemotherapy.

Patients who are in complete remission from diffuse large B-cell lymphoma may not need to undergo routine imaging follow-up, a new study showed.

A new risk assessment score more accurately reflects the probability of dying from chronic myeloid leukemia than do existing scoring systems.

Treatment with intermittent imatinib is feasible among elderly CML patients who are stable responders to the drug, according to a new study.

GM-CSF was associated with lower transplantation-related and cumulative mortality among patients undergoing allogeneic hematopoietic stem cell transplantation.

Seventy percent of insured patients with multiple myeloma had treatment-related financial burden, including some with household incomes greater than $100,000 a year.

The antibody-drug conjugate brentuximab vedotin is effective as a frontline therapy for Hodgkin lymphoma patients over age 60 who are unfit for chemotherapy.

Data taken from EUROCARE showed large variations in survival rates from several hematologic malignancies across European countries, with lower survival in Eastern Europe and higher survival in Northern and Central Europe.

New research showed that it appears to be feasible to treat low- and high-risk patients with acute promyelocytic leukemia with the chemotherapy-free regimen of all-trans retinoic acid and arsenic trioxide.

More patients with light-chain amyloidosis are surviving longer after autologous hematopoietic cell transplantation, with a reduction in early post-transplant mortality.