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Nucleophosmin1 (NPM1) mutations are the most frequently detected gene mutations in acute myeloid leukemia (AML) and are considered a favorable prognostic factor. We retrospectively analyzed the prognosis of 605 Japanese patients with de novo AML, including 174 patients with NPM1-mutated AML. Although patients with NPM1-mutated AML showed a high remission rate, this was not a favorable prognostic factor for overall survival (OS); this is contrary to generally accepted guidelines. Comprehensive gene mutation analysis showed that mutations in codon R882 of DNA methyltransferase 3A (DNMT3A

Akio Onishi,1 Yayoi Matsumura-Kimoto,1,2 Shinsuke Mizutani,1 Taku Tsukamoto,1 Takahiro Fujino,1 Akihiro Miyashita,1,3 Daichi Nishiyama,4 Kazuho Shimura,5 Hiroto Kaneko,5 Eri Kawata,6 Ryoichi Takahashi,7 Tsutomu Kobayashi,1,8 Hitoji Uchiyama,8 Nobuhiko Uoshima,3 Yoko Nukui,9 Yuji Shimura,1 Tohru Inaba,9 Junya Kuroda1 1Division of Hematology and Oncology, Department of Medicine, Kyoto Prefectural University of Medicine, Kyoto, Japan; 2Department of Hematology, Japan Community Health Care Organization Kyoto Kuramaguchi Medical Center, Kyoto, Japan; 3Department of Hematology, Japanese Red Cross Kyoto Daini Hospital, Kyoto, Japan; 4Department of Hematology, Fukuchiyama City Hospital, Fukuchiyama, Japan; 5Department of Hematology, Aiseikai Yamashina Hospital, Kyoto, Japan; 6Department of Hematology, Matsushita Memorial Hospital, Moriguchi, Japan; 7Department of Hematology, Omihachiman Community Medical Center, Omihachiman, Japan; 8Department of Hematology, Japanese Red Cross Kyoto Daiichi Hospital, Kyoto, Japan; 9Division of Infection Control & Molecular Laboratory Medicine, Department of Medicine, Kyoto Prefectural University of Medicine, Kyoto, JapanCorrespondence: Junya Kuroda, Division of Hematology and Oncology, Department of Medicine, Kyoto Prefectural University of Medicine, 465 Kajii-cho, Kamigyo-ku, Kyoto, 602-8566, Japan, Tel +81-75-251-5740, Fax +81-75-251-5743, Email junkuro@koto.kpu-m.ac.jpBackground and Purpose: Anti-CD20 monoclonal antibodies (MoAbs), rituximab (RIT), and obinutuzumab (OBZ) are the central components of immunochemotherapy for B-cell lymphoma (BCL). However, these agents potentially cause B-cell depletion, resulting in the impairment of antibody (Ab) production. During the severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2) pandemic, the optimal prediction of Ab response against anti–SARS-CoV-2 vaccination is critically important in patients with BCL treated by B-cell depletion therapeutics to prevent coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19).Patients and Methods:  We investigated the effect of using RIT and/or OBZ on the Ab response in 131 patients with various types of BCL who received the second SARS-CoV-2 mRNA vaccine either after, during, or before immunochemotherapy containing B-cell–depleting moiety between June and November 2021 at seven institutes belonging to the Kyoto Clinical Hematology Study Group. The SARS-Cov-2 neutralizing Ab (nAb) was measured from 14 to 207 days after the second vaccination dose using the iFlash3000 automatic analyzer and the iFlash-2019-nCoV Nab kit.Results: Among 86 patients who received the vaccine within 12 months after B-cell depletion therapy, 8 (9.3%) were seropositive. In 30 patients who received the vaccine after 12 months from B-cell depletion therapy, 22 (73%) were seropositive. In 15 patients who were subjected to B-cell depletion therapy after vaccination, 2 (13%) were seropositive. The multivariate analysis indicated that an interval of 12 months between B-cell depletion therapy and the subsequent vaccination was significantly associated with effective Ab production. Receiver operating characteristic curve analysis identified the optimal threshold period after anti-CD20 MoAb treatment, which determines the seropositivity against SARS-CoV-2, to be 342 days.Conclusion: The use of anti-CD20 MoAb within 12 months before vaccination is a critical risk for poor Ab response against anti–SARS-CoV-2 vaccination in patients with BCL.Keywords: COVID-19, vaccine, B-cell lymphoma, anti-CD20 monoclonal antibody

Molecular testing foriJAK2/imutations is part of the standard diagnostic workup for patients with suspected polycythemia vera. We sought to characterize evolving practice patterns in the investigation of erythrocytosis and the prevalence of secondary causes, including use of medications such as sodium-glucose cotransporter-2 (SGLT2) inhibitors, among patients who underwent molecular testing.We reviewed charts of all consecutive patients investigated for erythrocytosis (hemoglobingt; 160 g/L for women,gt; 165 g/L for men) withiJAK2/itesting between 2015 and 2021 at London Health Sciences Centre, a tertiary referral centre in Ontario, Canada, to assess changes in rates ofiJAK2/imutation positivity, average hemoglobin levels and the prevalence of secondary causes of erythrocytosis.A total of 891 patients with erythrocytosis underwentiJAK2/imutation testing with an increase in number of tests (particularly from 2017 to 2018), a decrease in the rate ofiJAK2/ipositivity and similar average hemoglobin levels over the study period. We observed a high proportion of patients with secondary causes of erythrocytosis, ranging from 59% to 74% over the study period, including medications associated with erythrocytosis, namely testosterone (6%-11%) and SGLT2 inhibitors (2%-19%). Stopping SGLT2 inhibitors was associated with a significant decrease in hemoglobin levels (mean -14.7 g/L, 95% confidence interval -18.9 to -10.5 g/L) compared with continuation.Use of SGLT2 inhibitors may be a common and underrecognized secondary cause of elevated hemoglobin levels in patients investigated for erythrocytosis. Our findings underscore the importance of a detailed medical history to support judicious use of molecular testing, in adherence with the current guideline on the investigation of erythrocytosis.

Liver metastasis is one of the most important prognostic factors in lung cancer patients. However, current therapies are not sufficient. RNA interference provides us a powerful and promising approach for treating human diseases including cancers. Herein, we investigated the in vitro effects of PLK-1 small interfering RNA (siRNA) on human lung cancer cell lines and the in vivo usage of PLK-1 siRNA with atelocollagen as a drug delivery system in a murine liver metastasis model of lung cancer. PLK-1 was overexpressed in cell lines and in cancerous tissues from lung cancer patients. PLK-1 siRNA treatment inhibited growth and induced apoptosis in a concentration-dependent manner. To verify in vivo efficacy, we confirmed that atelocollagen was a useful drug delivery system in our model of implanted luciferase-labeled A549LUC cells by detecting reduced bioluminescence after an i.v. injection of luciferase GL3 siRNA/atelocollagen. PLK-1 siRNA/atelocollagen was also successfully transfected into cells and inhibited the progression of metastases. This study shows the efficacy of i.v. administration of PLK-1 siRNA/atelocollagen for liver metastases of lung cancer. We believe siRNA therapy will be a powerful and promising strategy against advanced lung cancer. [Mol Cancer Ther 2008;7(9):2904–12]

Supplementary Fig. S1 from Administration of PLK-1 small interfering RNA with atelocollagen prevents the growth of liver metastases of lung cancer

Supplementary Figure Legends from Administration of PLK-1 small interfering RNA with atelocollagen prevents the growth of liver metastases of lung cancer

Supplementary Fig. S2 from Administration of PLK-1 small interfering RNA with atelocollagen prevents the growth of liver metastases of lung cancer

Supplementary Figure S3. AMO-1 cells and NCI-H929 cells were co-cultured with HS-5 cells for 48 hours, and then were treated by BX-912 at its IC50s for 3 hours. The activities of PDPK1Ser241, RSK2Ser227 and AKTThr308 were examined by Western blotting. Ctl. indicates cells cultured without the co-culture.

Supplementary Figure S2. A, DNA content was examined by propidium iodide (PI)-staining of formalin-fixed cells using flow cytometric analysis. The X-axis represents DNA content, and the Y-axis represents the relative cell numbers. AR-12 (AR) treatment reduced G1 population (light green fraction) and increased the subG1 fraction, a hallmark of apoptosis induction (indicated by arrow), in the myeloma AMO-1 and NCI-H929 cell lines. AMO-1 and NCI-H929 cells were treated with AR at their IC80 concentrations for 12 and 24 hours. B, AMO-1 and NCI-H929 cells were treated with AR at their IC80 concentrations for 6 to 12 hours, and were subjected to double staining for Annexin-V (X-axis) and PI (Y-axis). AR treatment caused the increase of cells undergoing early apoptosis (Annexin-V-positive/PI-negative fraction) first, and, then, resulted in the increase of cells undergoing late apoptosis (double positive for Annexin-V and PI) in both AMO-1 cells and NCI-H929 cells.

Supplementary Figure S1. AMO-1 cells and NCI-H929 cells were seeded at 2 x 105 cells/ml on day 0, and were treated either by BX-912 or AR12 at their concentrations of 5, 10, or 20 microM for 24, 48, and 72 hours. Cells were directly stained by trypan blue, and viable cell numbers were counted under the inverted microscope. Results were mean{plus minus}SD of triplicate analyses.

Supplemental Methods and Legends

Supplementary Figure S4. A. BX-912 shows no cross-resistance with BTZ. BX-912 exerted its growth inhibitory effect on BTZ-resistant KMS-11/BTZ cells and OPM-2/BTZ cells (red lines) as effectively as on their respective parental cells (blue dotted lines). Cells were treated with the indicated concentrations of either BX-912 or BTZ for 48 hours. The viable cell number of untreated cells was considered to be 1.0. B. The combination of BX-912 and the NF-κB inhibitor, BAY11-7085, exhibited an additive growth inhibitory effect on BTZ-resistant KMS-11/BTZ cells and OPM-2/BTZ cells. Shaded areas represent the additive effects of the two agents.

Supplementary Table S1. Clinical information of patients whose myeloma cells were subjected to Western blotting and in vitro treatment with BX-912.

Recent studies have reported that measurable residual disease (MRD) analysis using NPM1 mutations helps determine whether allogeneic hematopoietic stem cell transplantation (allo-HSCT) is indicated in acute myeloid leukemia (AML) patients. However, the optimal timing and cutoff value for measuring MRD using genomic DNA remain undetermined. This study aimed to investigate the optimal timing and cutoff value to ascertain the value of NPM1 mutation in MRD assessment. NPM1-mutated MRD was quantified by real-time polymerase chain reaction of bone marrow samples from 56 patients with NPM1-positive AML who achieved hematological remission. The area under the receiver-operating characteristic curve was greatest when MRD was assessed after two courses of post-remission therapy with a cutoff value of 0.010% (specificity, 68.4%; sensitivity, 87.0%). Patients whose MRD was below the cutoff value throughout the course of treatment had significantly better overall survival and relapse-free survival rates. Of the 33 patients who did not undergo transplantation during the first remission, all of the 11 who were never MRD-negative at any point experienced a relapse. Evaluating MRD with a cutoff value of 0.010% after two courses of post-remission therapy helps predict prognosis and determine the indication for allo-HSCT.

Erythrocytosis, most often measured as an increase in hemoglobin and/or hematocrit, is a common reason for referral to internal medicine and hematology clinics and a rational approach is required to effectively identify patients with polycythemia vera while avoiding over-investigation.We aimed to develop and validate a simple rule to predict JAK2 mutation positivity based on complete blood count parameters to aid in the diagnostic approach to patients referred for elevated hemoglobin.Internal medicine and hematology clinics at an academic tertiary referral center.The JAK2 Prediction Cohort (JAKPOT), a large retrospective cohort (n = 901) of patients evaluated by internal medicine and hematology specialists for elevated hemoglobin.JAK2 mutation analysis was performed in all patients and clinical and laboratory variables were collected. Patients were randomly divided into derivation and validation cohorts. A prediction rule was developed using data from the derivation cohort and tested in the validation cohort.The JAKPOT prediction rule included three variables: (i) red blood cell count6.45×10In patients with elevated hemoglobin, the use of a simple prediction rule helps to accurately identify patients with a low likelihood of having a JAK2 mutation, potentially limiting costly over-investigation in this common referral population.

Background Clinical manifestations and optimal management strategies in patients with splanchnic vein thrombosis (SVT) are not well characterized. Methods We conducted a retrospective cohort study including all newly diagnosed SVT evaluated between January 2007 and December 2018. Efficacy outcome was thrombosis resolution, and safety outcomes included death and occurrence of bleeding. Results We included 155 patients with a mean age of 56.2 (18–87). Local risk factors were present in 118 (76.1%) patients and 30 (19.4%) had only systemic/thrombophilia. Local risk factors included abdominal cancers (31%), surgery (20.6%) and liver cirrhosis (19.4%). Thrombophilia screening was conducted in approximately 50% of patients. Factor V Leiden or Prothrombin G20210A mutations were observed in 7.1% of patients whereas 14.4% were JAK2V617F mutation positive. Most common manifestations at onset were abdominal pain (56.1%), whereas 44.6% were incidentally found. Portal vein thrombosis was observed more in primary cases (91.9% vs. 69.5%, p = 0.012). Anticoagulation was used in 93.5% cases. Indefinite anticoagulation was used more frequently in primary SVT (62.2% vs. 41.5%, p = 0.045). Thrombosis resolution and bleeding complications among primary (without local risk factors) and secondary (with local risk factors) SVT were observed in 48.5%, 65%, 8.1%, and 11.9%, respectively with no difference when comparing patients treated with direct oral anticoagulants or warfarin and/or low molecular weight heparin (58% vs. 62%, p = 0.326, 9% vs. 12%, p = 0.518). Conclusions In this cohort anticoagulation resulted in partial or complete thrombosis resolution in a significant proportion of patients with an acceptable bleeding risk regardless local risk factors or type of anticoagulant.

Primary ocular adnexal mucosa-associated lymphoid tissue (MALT) lymphoma (POAML) is the most common subtype of indolent ocular adnexal lymphomas. Although radiotherapy (RT) is the standard of care for localized POAML, it can occasionally lead to permanent side effects. Other treatment strategies, such as rituximab (R) monotherapy and immunochemotherapy, have been used for POAML treatment, but their long-term benefits and relative merits remain unclear. While watchful waiting (WW) is a potential option for some indolent lymphomas, the benefits of WW for POAML patients are also unclear.We here retrospectively analyzed 75 patients who were diagnosed with POAML between 2008 and 2019 in the institutions of the Kyoto Clinical Hematology Study Group.Commonly involved sites were conjunctiva (42.7%), orbit (36.0%), and lacrimal gland (12.0%), and most patients (92.0%) presented with Ann Arbor stage IE disease. The treatment strategy was selected at the physicians' discretion. More patients without subjective symptoms by tumor mass were subjected to WW (29 patients), while more patients with tumor-derived subjective symptoms were treated by tumor-directed therapy (24 received focal RT, and 19 received R monotherapy). Complete response rates were 79.2% and 42.1% in the RT and R groups, respectively. At 60 months of follow-up, the estimated proportions of POAML patients not requiring new treatment were 69.4%, 85.2%, and 53.8% in the WW, RT, and R groups, respectively. There were no significant differences in the time to start a new treatment between WW and RT groups (median: both not reached [NR], p = 0.187) and between WW and R groups (median: NR vs. 69.0 months, p = 0.554). No specific predictive factor for the future need of treatment was identified in the WW group.Our results demonstrate WW may be an acceptable treatment option for POAML, especially for asymptomatic patients.

Next-generation sequencing (NGS) increasingly influences diagnosis, prognosis and management of myelodysplastic syndrome (MDS). In addition to marrow morphology and flow cytometry, our institution performs cytogenetics (CG) and NGS-based testing routinely in patients with suspected MDS. We evaluated the relative value of NGS in the assessment of patients with suspected MDS. We initially compared the diagnostic and prognostic information derived from CG and NGS in 134 patients. NGS enhanced the diagnostic yield compared to CG for clonal myeloid disorders (sensitivity 77% vs. 42·2%; specificity 90·2% vs. 78%; positive predictive value 92·8% vs. 76%; and negative predictive value 70·8% vs. 45·5%). The identification of poor prognosis mutations by NGS altered risk category in 27/39 (69·2%) patients with MDS with good/intermediate risk CG. Subsequently, we prospectively evaluated 70 patients with suspected MDS using an 'NGS-first approach' with CG restricted to samples with morphological abnormalities. We rarely identified mutations or CG abnormalities in patients without dysplastic features. NGS has a superior diagnostic performance compared to CG in patients with suspected MDS. We estimate that by using an 'NGS-first approach' we could reduce karyotyping by approximately 30%.

We conducted a post hoc analysis of our previous pilot observational study on the efficacy and safety of carfilzomib (CFZ)-containing therapy in 50 patients with relapsed/refractory multiple myeloma in routine practice to clarify the relationships between three major criteria for vulnerability (frailty, poor performance status [PS], and advanced age [≥ 75 years]) and their clinical impact on efficacy and adverse events (AEs). Sixteen patients fulfilled at least one and five patients fulfilled all three criteria. The overall response rate was not significantly affected by frailty, poor PS, and/or advanced age; however, frailty and advanced age were significantly associated with shorter progression-free survival (PFS). In contrast, no significant difference in PFS was observed between patients with PS0-1 or PS2-4. The three criteria for vulnerability were associated with more frequent hematologic AEs: frailty, poor PS, and/or advanced age significantly increased the risk of grade 3-4 anemia and lymphopenia. However, these criteria were not associated with increased risk of other non-hematologic AEs except infection. Collectively, these results demonstrate the need to carefully manage severe hematologic AEs in vulnerable patients and perform disease-specific assessment of frailty to predict prognosis.

Introduction In most laboratories, next generation sequencing (NGS) has been added without consideration for redundancy compared to conventional cytogenetics (CG). We tested a streamlined approach to genomic testing in patients with suspected myeloid and plasma cell neoplasms using next generation sequencing ("NGS first") as the primary testing modality and limiting cytogenetics (CG) to samples with morphologic abnormalities in the marrow aspirate. Methods Based on morphologic interpretation of bone marrow aspirate and flow cytometry, samples were triaged into four groups: (a) Samples with dysplasia or excess blasts had both NGS and karyotyping; (b) Samples without excess blasts or dysplasia had NGS only; (c) Repeat samples with previous NGS and/or CG studies were not retested; (d) Samples for suspected myeloma with less than 5% plasma cell had CG testing cancelled. Results Seven hundred eleven adult bone marrow (BM) samples met the study criteria. The NGS first algorithm eliminated CG testing in 229/303 (75.6%) of patients, primarily by reducing repeat testing. Potential cost avoided was approximately $124 000 per annum. Hematologists overruled the triage comment in only 11/303 (3.6%) cases requesting CG testing for a specific indication. Conclusions Utilizing NGS as the primary genomic testing modality NGS was feasible and well accepted, reducing over three quarters of all CG requests and improving the financial case for adoption of NGS. Key factors for the success of this study were collaboration of clinical and genomic diagnostic teams in developing the algorithm, rapid turnaround time for BM interpretation for triage, and communication between laboratories.

It is well studied that physical function and social background affect the quality of life (QoL) of cancer patients. However, differences in QoL by age and factors affecting health state utility values (HSUV) of patients with hematological malignancies have not yet been sufficiently investigated. Our aim is to investigate the factors that affect QoL and HSUV in such patients.A total of 32 patients with hematological malignancies on outpatient chemotherapy were included. QoL and HSUV were evaluated using the EuroQol-5 Dimension 5-level (EQ-5D-5L). Physical function was assessed using grip strength, knee extension strength, 6-min walking distance, and Short Physical Performance Battery (SPPB). Fatigue was assessed using Brief Fatigue Inventory (BFI), and nutritional status was assessed using Mini Nutritional Assessment-Short Form (MNA-SF).In the EQ-5D-5L, a high percentage of the patients were aware of mobility problems and pain/discomfort, and mobility problems were more common in the older-aged group (≥ 65 years old, n = 16) than in the middle-aged group ( 65 years old, n = 16). In addition, the older-aged group showed lower HSUV and physical function. SPPB (β = 0.38, p 0.01), BFI (β = - 0.58, p 0.01), and MNA-SF (β = 0.29, p = 0.02) were independent factors affecting HSUV (adjusted RComprehensive supports, to improve lower extremity function, fatigue, and nutritional status, are required to augment QoL and HSUV in patients with hematological malignancies.

Background:Primary ocular adnexal mucosa-associated lymphoid tissue (MALT) lymphoma (POAML) is the most common subtype of ocular adnexal lymphomas, and most patients with POAML show an indolent clinical course and achieve long-term survival. Although radiotherapy (RT) is the standard of care for localized POAML, it can occasionally lead to permanent side effects. Other treatment strategies, such as rituximab (R) monotherapy and immunochemotherapy, have been used for POAML treatment, but their long-term benefits and relative merits remain unclear. Considering that watchful waiting (WW) is a potential option for some indolent lymphomas, WW is expected to be a therapeutic option for POAML. However, the benefits of WW for POAML patients are also unclear. The aim of this study is to determine the optimal treatment strategy for POAML.Methods:We retrospectively analyzed 75 patients who were diagnosed POAML between 2008 and 2019 in the institutions of the Kyoto Clinical Hematology Study Group. Results: The median age was 68 years, and 41 patients were women. Common involved sites were conjunctiva (42.7%), orbit (36.0%), and lacrimal gland (12.0%), and most patients (92.0%) presented with Ann Arbor stage IE disease. The treatment strategy was selected at the physicians’ discretion, and more patients without subjective symptoms by tumor mass were subjected to WW (29 patients, 38.7%), while more patients with tumor-derived subjective symptoms were treated by tumor-directed therapy (24 [32.0%] received focal RT, and 19 [25.3%] received R monotherapy). Complete response rates were 79.2% and 42.1% in the RT and R groups, respectively. At 60 months’ follow-up, the estimated proportions of POAML patients not requiring new treatment were 69.4%, 85.2%, and 53.8% in the WW, RT, and R groups, respectively. There were no significant differences in the time to start of new treatment between WW and RT groups (median: both not reached [NR], p = 0.187) and between WW and R groups (median: NR vs. 69.0 months, p = 0.554). No specific predictive factor for the future need of treatment was identified in the WW group. Conclusions:WW may be an acceptable treatment option for POAML, especially in asymptomatic patients.

This multicenter phase II study (UMIN000008145) aims to investigate the efficacy and safety of six cycles of combination therapy (RBD) comprising rituximab, bendamustine, and dexamethasone (DEX) for relapsed or refractory (RR) indolent B-cell non-Hodgkin lymphoma (B-NHL) and mantle cell lymphoma (MCL). Although the initial study protocol comprised 20 mg/body DEX on days 1 and 2, and 10 mg/body on days 3-5 [high-dose (HD-) DEX group], the dose of DEX was later decreased to 8 mg/body on days 1 and 2 [low-dose (LD-) DEX group] due to frequent cytomegalovirus (CMV) antigenemia and recurrent retinitis. We enrolled 33 patients, and LD-DEX and HD-DEX were administered in 15 and 18 patients, respectively. The overall response and the 3-year progression-free survival rates were 88% and 75.5%, respectively. The leading adverse event was myelosuppression. Incidence of grade 3-4 leukocytopenia, neutropenia, and lymphocytopenia was 55%, 67%, and 91%, respectively. The most frequent nonhematological adverse events were CMV antigenemia and rash (33% and 30%, respectively). Incidence of CMV antigenemia over 10/100,000 white blood cells was significantly lower with LD-DEX than that with HD-DEX (P = 0.0127). In conclusion, RBD showed significant effectiveness for RR indolent B-NHL and MCL.

Key Points CEBPA mutation in the bZIP domain is associated with favorable prognosis in de novo AML, even if it was detected as CEBPAsm., Visual Abstract, Mutations of CCAAT/enhancer–binding protein alpha (CEBPAmu) are found in 10% to 15% of de novo acute myeloid leukemia (AML) cases. Double-mutated CEBPA (CEBPAdm) is associated with a favorable prognosis; however, single-mutated CEBPA (CEBPAsm) does not seem to improve prognosis. We investigated CEBPAmu for prognosis in 1028 patients with AML, registered in the Multi-center Collaborative Program for Gene Sequencing of Japanese AML. It was found that CEBPAmu in the basic leucine zipper domain (bZIP) was strongly associated with a favorable prognosis, but CEBPAmu out of the bZIP domain was not. The presence of CEBPAmu in bZIP was a strong indicator of a higher chance of achieving complete remission (P < .001), better overall survival (OS; P < .001) and a lower risk of relapse (P < .001). The prognostic significance of CEBPAmu in bZIP was also observed in the subgroup with CEBPAsm (all patients: OS, P = .008; the cumulative incidence of relapse, P = .063; patients aged ≤70 years and with intermediate-risk karyotype: OS, P = .008; cumulative incidence of relapse, P = .026). Multivariate analysis of 744 patients aged ≤70 years showed that CEBPAmu in bZIP was the most potent predictor of OS (hazard ratio, 0.3287; P < .001). CEBPAdm was validated as a cofounding factor, which was overlapping with CEBPAmu in bZIP. In summary, these findings indicate that CEBPAmu in bZIP is a potent marker for AML prognosis. It holds potential in the refinement of treatment stratification and the development of targeted therapeutic approaches in CEBPA-mutated AML.

In the opinion of the European LeukemiaNet (ELN), nucleophosmin member 1 gene mutation (NPM1 mut)–positive acute myeloid leukemia (AML) with an fms-like kinase 3-internal tandem duplication (FLT3-ITD) allele ratio (AR)

Diffuse large B‐cell lymphoma (DLBCL), which is the most prevalent disease subtype of non‐Hodgkin lymphoma, is highly heterogeneous in terms of cytogenetic and molecular features. This study retrospectively investigated the clinical impact of G‐banding‐defined chromosomal abnormality on treatment outcomes of DLBCL in the era of rituximab‐containing immunochemotherapy. Of 181 patients who were diagnosed with DLBCL and treated with R‐CHOP or an R‐CHOP‐like regimen between January 2006 and April 2014, metaphase spreads were evaluable for G‐banding in 120. In these 120 patients, 40 were found to harbor a single chromosomal aberration type; 63 showed chromosomal abnormality variations (CAVs), which are defined by the presence of different types of chromosomal abnormalities in G‐banding, including 19 with two CAVs and 44 with ≥3 CAVs; and 17 had normal karyotypes. No specific chromosomal break point or numerical abnormality was associated with overall survival (OS) or progression‐free survival (PFS), but the presence of ≥3 CAVs was significantly associated with inferior OS rates (hazard ratio (HR): 2.222, 95% confidence interval (CI): 1.056–4.677, P = 0.031) and tended to be associated with shorter PFS (HR: 1.796, 95% CI: 0.965–3.344, P = 0.061). In addition, ≥3 CAVs more frequently accumulated in high‐risk patients, as defined by several conventional prognostic indices, such as the revised International Prognostic Index. In conclusion, our results suggest that the emergence of more CAVs, especially ≥3, based on chromosomal instability underlies the development of high‐risk disease features and a poor prognosis in DLBCL.

Background: Since the identification of JAK2 mutations in polycythemia vera (PV) in 2005 (Kralovics et al., NEJM 2005), molecular testing of JAK2 in patients with erythrocytosis has become part of routine clinical practice. We hypothesized that changes in the World Health Organization (WHO) diagnostic criteria for PV in 2016, which lowered the hemoglobin threshold to >165 g/L for men and >160 g/L for women, may have resulted in increased molecular testing. This study examines changing patterns of utilization of molecular diagnostics in patients referred for erythrocytosis at a tertiary care center. Methods: We examined all patients with erythrocytosis who underwent JAK2 testing, which included testing for JAK2 V617F with PCR between 2015 and 2017, and JAK2 V617F and exon 12 mutations with Next-Generation Sequencing (NGS) between 2018 and 2020 at London Health Sciences Centre in Ontario, Canada. We performed a retrospective chart review to extract laboratory and clinical data, including information on medical comorbidities and medications, with a focus on known secondary causes of erythrocytosis. Results: A total of 668 patients with erythrocytosis underwent JAK2 testing at our institution between August 1, 2015 and December 31, 2020. There was an overall increase in testing over the five-year study period, with a decline in the positive detection rate: 8/29 (28%) in 2015, 15/94 (16%) in 2016, 15/100 (15%) in 2017, 19/136 (14%) in 2018, 17/162 (10%) in 2019, and 14/147 (10%) in 2020 (Figure 1). The average hemoglobin levels in patients with erythrocytosis who underwent testing remained similar across all years (range 170-173 g/L for women, 179-181 g/L for men). In our cohort, there was a high proportion of patients with known or suspected secondary causes of erythrocytosis who underwent molecular testing. Between 2018 and 2020, 324/445 (73%) of patients who underwent molecular testing had either chronic obstructive pulmonary disease, obstructive sleep apnea, other hypoxic lung disease, smoking history, erythropoietin-secreting tumor, or potential drug-induced erythrocytosis. Specifically, we observed an increase in proportion of patients who underwent molecular testing on sodium-glucose cotransporter-2 (SGLT-2) inhibitors, a known secondary cause of erythrocytosis, with 15/136 (11%) in 2018, 17/162 (10%) in 2019, and 25/147 (17%) in 2020. In contrast, the proportion of patients on testosterone was relatively constant at 15/136 (11%) in 2018, 11/162 (6.8%) in 2019, and 11/147 (7.5%) in 2020. Conclusion: This study revealed that a high proportion of patients with known or suspected secondary causes of erythrocytosis underwent JAK2 testing, resulting in increase in molecular testing over time and a decline in positive detection rate. In particular, we observed a number of patients on SGLT-2 inhibitors who had investigation, suggesting that this class of medications may be an underrecognized cause of drug-induced erythrocytosis (Chin-Yee et al., CMAJ 2020). Our findings underscore the importance of careful medical history and medication review to support more judicious use of molecular testing. Similarity in average hemoglobin levels across the five-year study period suggests that other factors, such as increased availability of 'routine' molecular testing, rather than changes in the WHO diagnostic criteria may explain increases in JAK2 testing. Our study indicates a need to develop an effective clinical prediction rule for JAK2 positivity to better risk stratify patients with suspected PV based on clinical and laboratory parameters to optimize utilization of molecular diagnostics. Figure 1 Figure 1. Disclosures No relevant conflicts of interest to declare.

Background: The widespread availability of molecular testing for JAK2 mutations has facilitated the diagnosis of polycythemia vera (PV) but also raises the concern of test overutilization in patients referred for elevated hemoglobin. At our institution, we have observed increased molecular testing in these patients with declining rates of JAK2 mutation positivity, suggesting that a prediction rule could be useful to guide such testing. In this study, we report the derivation and validation of a simple rule using complete blood count (CBC) parameters to predict the likelihood of having a JAK2 mutation in patients referred for elevated hemoglobin. Methods: We examined all patients with elevated hemoglobin (≥160 g/L for women, or ≥165 g/L for men), who underwent JAK2 mutation testing using the Next-Generation Sequencing (NGS)-based Oncomine Myeloid Research Assay (ThermoFisher Scientific, MA, USA), between 2018 and 2021 at the London Health Sciences Centre in Ontario, Canada. We extracted data including age and sex as well as CBC parameters at the time of testing, including hemoglobin, hematocrit, erythrocytes, leukocytes, neutrophils, platelets and mean corpuscular volume. All CBCs were performed on a Sysmex XN Analyzer (Sysmex Corporation, Japan). In the derivation cohort, JAK2-positive and -negative groups were compared using Student's t-tests or c 2 tests, as appropriate. We dichotomized potentially significant continuous variables at an optimal cut-off point using receiving operating characteristic curves. Potentially significant predictors were evaluated using multiple variable stepwise logistic regression analysis with JAK2 positivity as the dependent variable. The model was evaluated using Hosmer-Lemeshow tests and pseudo-R2 measures. A dichotomous score was derived based on the presence or absence of significant variables and subsequently evaluated and internally validated using logistic regression and c 2 tests using non-parametric bootstrapping with 1000 samples. The model was subsequently validated in the second cohort. Results: The derivation cohort included 308 patients tested between January 9, 2018 and December 19, 2019, and the validation cohort included 223 patients tested between January 7, 2020 and May 12, 2021. The characteristics of both cohorts are shown in Table 1. The final model included platelets above the upper quintile (308 × 10 9/L) and erythrocytes above the upper quartile (6.17 × 10 12/L) and a score of one was assigned to patients with either of these characteristics. The odds ratio for JAK2 positivity in patients with a score of 1 was 14.6 (95% CI 5.5-38.8) compared to those with a score of 0. The model had a sensitivity of 87.8% and a negative predictive value of 97.4% in the derivation cohort, and of 100% for both in the validation cohort. The percentage of JAK2 positive patients in patients with a score of 1 was 28%. The percent of false negatives was 2.6% (95% CI 1.1-6.0) and 0 (95% CI 0-2.8) in the derivation and validation cohorts, respectively. The use of this rule to guide molecular testing would have resulted in approximately 60% fewer tests. Conclusion: We developed and validated a simple rule to predict the likelihood of JAK2 mutation positivity in patients with a hemoglobin of 160 or higher, based on CBC parameters with a high negative predictive value (Figure 1). If implemented, this prediction rule could result in a significant reduction in molecular testing avoiding 60% or approximately 100 tests per year at our institution. This approach would be particularly beneficial for broader health system management of hematological malignancies, facilitating the reallocation of resources to emerging higher-yield molecular diagnostic investigation (Kawata et al., BJH 2021). Figure 1 Figure 1. Disclosures No relevant conflicts of interest to declare.

Cytogenetic/molecular heterogeneity is the hallmark of multiple myeloma (MM). However, we recently showed that the serine/threonine kinase PDPK1 and its substrate RPS6KA3 (also termed RSK2) are universally active in MM, and play pivotal roles in myeloma pathophysiology. In this study, we assessed involvement of aberrant miR-375 repression in PDPK1 overexpression in MM. An analysis of plasma cells from 30 pre-malignant monoclonal gammopathies of undetermined significance and 73 MM patients showed a significant decrease in miR-375 expression in patient-derived plasma cells regardless of the clinical stage, compared to normal plasma cells. Introduction of miR-375 reduced PDPK1 expression in human myeloma cell lines (HMCLs), indicating that miR-375 is the dominant regulator of PDPK1 expression. In addition, miR-375 introduction also downregulated IGF1R and JAK2 in HMCLs. CpG islands in the MIR375 promoter were pathologically hypermethylated in all 8 HMCLs examined and in most of 58 patient-derived myeloma cells. Treatment with SGI-110, a hypomethylating agent, and/or trichostatin A, a histone deacetylase inhibitor, increased miR-375 expression, but repressed PDPK1, IGF1R and JAK2 in HMCLs. Collectively, these results show the universal involvement of overlapping epigenetic dysregulation for abnormal miR-375 repression in MM, which is likely to contribute to myelomagenesis and to subsequent myeloma progression by activating oncogenic signalling pathways.

Disease-specific cytogenetic abnormalities involving BCL2 gene rearrangement frequently co-exist with other cytogenetic abnormalities, contributing to disease progression in follicular lymphoma (FL). In the present study, we retrospectively investigated the prognostic impact of BCL2-unrelated cytogenetic abnormalities in FL. Of 139 consecutively diagnosed patients with FL at two independent institutes, metaphase spreads of tumor cells were obtained for use in G-banding analysis in 77 patients. The recurrent additional cytogenetic abnormalities included chromosome gains +5 (n = 8), +7 (n = 16), +12 (n = 10), and +X (n = 12), and losses -8 (n = 7), -13 (n = 12) -15 (n = 7), and 6q- (n = 7). While -15 was associated with shorter progression-free survival (PFS) in all 77 analyzed patients with evaluable G-banding results (p = 0.04), this negative impact was not evident in 42 patients treated using an R-CHOP-like regimen as first-line treatment. By contrast, 6q- was predictive for shorter PFS in patients who were initially treated with R-CHOP-like regimens without maintenance therapy (p

The combinations of melphalan, bortezomib, and prednisolone (VMP) and of lenalidomide and dexamethasone (Rd) are standard treatment strategies for transplant-ineligible newly diagnosed multiple myeloma (NDMM). To make the most of these two strategies, we investigated the efficacy and feasibility of first-line treatment with 4 cycles of VMP followed by continuous Rd therapy in a multi-institutional phase 2 study in Japanese patients with transplant-ineligible NDMM. Thirty-six patients of median age 74 years old with NDMM initially received 35-day cycles of VMP: oral melphalan (6 mg/m2) and prednisolone (60 mg/m2) on days 1 to 4 and bortezomib (1.3 mg/m2) on days 1, 8, 15, and 22. After 4 cycles of VMP, treatment was switched to 28-day cycles of Rd, which was continued until disease progression or emergence of an unacceptable adverse event (AE) in 33 patients, while one patient who achieved CR after VMP continued VMP at the physician's discretion. The overall response rates after VMP and after Rd were 66.7% and 86.1%, including CR rates of 5.6% and 36.1%, respectively. In a median follow-up period of 34.3 months, the progression-free survival and overall survival rates at 3 years were 43.2% and 81.3%, respectively. Grade 3-4 hematological AEs included neutropenia (39% with VMP and 24% with Rd) and thrombocytopenia (11% with VMP and 3% with Rd). There was no death due to an AE. In conclusion, sequential therapy with VMP followed by Rd is effective and mostly feasible for transplant-ineligible NDMM. The study is registered as UMIN000034815.

The risk of complication of polycythemia vera (PV) and essential thrombocythemia (ET) by thrombosis in Japanese patients is clearly lower than in western populations, suggesting that genetic background such as race may influence the clinical features. This study aimed to clarify the relationship between genetic mutations and haplotypes and clinical features in Japanese patients with PV and ET. Clinical features were assessed prospectively among 74 PV and 303 ET patients. There were no clinical differences, including JAK2V617F allele burden, between PV patients harboring the various genetic mutations. However, CALR mutation-positive ET patients had a significantly lower WBC count, Hb value, Ht value, and neutrophil alkaline phosphatase score (NAP), and significantly more platelets, relative to JAK2V617F-positive ET patients and ET patients with no mutations. Compared to normal controls, the frequency of the JAK246/1 haplotype was significantly higher among patients with JAK2V617F, JAK2Ex12del, or MPL mutations, whereas no significant difference was found among CALR mutation-positive patients. CALR mutation-positive patients had a lower incidence of thrombosis relative to JAK2V617F-positive patients. Our findings suggest that JAK2V617F-positive ET patients and CALR mutation-positive patients have different mechanisms of occurrence and clinical features of ET, suggesting the potential need for therapy stratification in the future.

Introduction: Unexplained erythrocytosis is a common reason for consultation in hematology. Identification of JAK2V617F mutation has facilitated the diagnosis of Polycythemia Vera (PV), but a proportion of patients without clear secondary causes for erythrocytosis remain undiagnosed or presumptively diagnosed with an either Exon 12 mutation or JAK2 negative PV. Since 2005, our institution has been performing JAK2V617F testing by PCR. In 2018 we switched to an NGS panel which includes JAK2/exon 12 and 40 other genes implicated in myeloid malignancies. We reviewed all previously diagnosed PV who had NGS myeloid panel performed to determine whether patients with a clinical diagnosis of JAK2 negative PV had other myeloid mutations that might explain their erythrocytosis and alter their management. Methods: We identified all cases with clinically suspected PV or confirmed JAK2 mutated PV who went on to have had NGS testing performed between January 2018 and February 2019 at London Health Sciences Centre, a tertiary care center servicing a population of approximately 2.5 million in Ontario, Canada. The Oncomine Myeloid NGS panel (Thermo-Fisher, MA, USA) examines DNA sequence variants in 40 genes (17 full genes and 23 hotspot genes) along with an RNA-based panel of 29 fusion driver genes and their over 600 fusion partners. Diagnosis was based on the WHO 2016 Classification of Tumours of Haematopoietic and Lymphoid Tissues. The clinical impact was assessed from retrospective review of electronic medical record to determine whether there was a diagnostic or management impact. Results: A total of 143 patients followed for PV or unexplained erythrocytosis had NGS testing during the study period. Of those, 137/143 (95.8%) patients had previous JAK2V617F PCR tested and 48/137 (35%) were identified with JAK2V617F mutation. Of the 48 patients with previous JAK2V617F PCR detected, NGS confirmed JAK2 mutation in 40/48 (83.3%) with additional non-JAK2 mutations in 17/40 (42.5%) patients. Of note 8/48 (16.7%) patients previously detected JAK2V617F by PCR had undetectable JAK2 mutation when repeat testing was performed by NGS. Of those 89/137 (65%) patients with previous JAK2V617F PCR negative result, NGS revealed JAK2 exon 12 mutation in 3/89 (3.4%) patients and JAK2V617F/JAK2L611V mutations in 1/89 (1.1%) patient resulting in diagnosis as PV, whereas non-JAK2 mutations in 6/89 (6.7%) patients. No MPL or CALR positive cases were identified in this cohort. Remaining 79/89 (88.8%) had no mutations identified (Figure1) and in this group, 13/79 (16.5%) patients were discharged from hematology clinic, 7/79 (8.9%) had therapies such as phlebotomy, aspirin or hydroxyurea stopped or reduced, whereas 2/79 (2.5%) patients had further evaluation or testing for unexplained erythrocytosis. (Table 1) Conclusions: In the unexplained erythrocytosis JAK2V617F PCR negative group, JAK2exon 12 mutation was identified in 3.4% in keeping with known incidence of this mutation. Some previously positive PCR JAK2V617F mutation were not identified by NGS panel (16%) which may reflect changes in clone size either with time or therapy or inherent differences in assay sensitivity (2.5% mutational alleles for NGS versus 0.1% for PCR). Lack of identifiable myeloid mutation and clonal hematopoiesis by NGS testing influenced clinical management. Specifically, mutation negative patients were more likely assigned to non-MPN group and called secondary erythrocytosis which resulted in reducing interventions. Non-JAK2 mutations occurred in more than 1/3 of previously identified JAK2 positive PCR tested PV. The clinical impact of most these mutations is uncertain and requires longer follow up. Disclosures No relevant conflicts of interest to declare.

The ELN guideline classifying FLT3-ITD low allele ratio with NPM1 mutation as having a favorable prognosis is questionable.Performing allo-HSCT during CR1 irrespective of the FLT3-ITD allele ratio and NPM1 mut status significantly improves outcome.

We investigated clinical and genetic characteristics of high-risk follicular lymphoma (FL), that lacked evidence of large cell transformation at diagnosis, in the rituximab era. First, we retrospectively analysed the clinical features of 100 patients with non-transformed FL that were consecutively treated with rituximab-containing therapies in a discovery cohort. The presence of either peripheral blood and/or bone involvement was associated with short progression-free survival. This was confirmed in a validation cohort of 66 FL patients. Then, whole exome sequencing was performed on randomly selected 5 high- and 9 standard-risk FL tumours. The most common mutational signature was a CG > TG substitution-enriched signature associated with spontaneous deamination of 5-methylcytosine at CpG, but mutations in WA and WRC(Y) motifs (so-called activation-induced cytidine deaminase (AID) motifs) were also enriched throughout the whole exome. We found clustered mutations in target sequences of AID in the IG and BCL2 loci. Importantly, high-risk FLs harboured more somatic mutations (mean 190 vs. 138, P = 0.04), including mutations in WA (33 vs. 22, P = 0.038), WRC (34 vs. 22, P = 0.016) and WRCY motifs (17 vs. 11, P = 0.004). These results suggest that genomic instability that allows for emergence of distinct mutations through AID activity underlies development of the high-risk FL phenotype.

Background: In patients with suspected myelodysplastic syndrome (MDS), ancillary tests including cytogenetics (CG) and molecular diagnostics often support the diagnosis and add prognostic value guiding treatment decisions. Frequently, high-cost new technologies such as next generation sequencing (NGS) are added to the existing test menu without consideration for redundancy or added value. In our institution most patients with suspected MDS or cytopenias of undetermined origin will have conventional CG and NGS routinely ordered in addition to bone marrow (BM) morphology and flow cytometry (FCM). In a previous retrospective study, we evaluated combined NGS and CG in 120 patients and we found that our NGS panel had enhanced diagnostic and prognostic advantages over standard karyotyping. Based on these results, we undertook a quality improvement (QI) project to streamline molecular diagnostic testing, reduce test redundancy, turnaround time and cost. Methods: Between February and June 2019 we prospectively evaluated an "NGS first approach" to investigate patients with suspected MDS or cytopenias of undetermined origin. We assessed BM morphology, FCM, NGS testing (Oncomine Myeloid Research Assay, Thermo-Fisher) and CG for all patients. To assess whether BM aspirates can be used to triage appropriate use of NGS and CG, expert morphologists assigned BM samples to either the NGS/CG group or NGS only group, based exclusively on the presence of morphological abnormalities suggesting the possibility of an MDS. Results: We included 50 patients with suspected MDS or cytopenias of undetermined origin. Of these, 33 (66%) were triaged into the NGS/CG group and the remaining 17 (34%) into the NGS only group. In the NGS/CG group NGS testing revealed DNA mutations in 27 (81.8%) patients, whereas CG showed an abnormal karyotype in 12 (36.4%). Among the 21 patients with normal karyotype, NGS revealed mutations in 17 (81%). Two patients (6%) were identified as MDS by morphological examination and had an abnormal karyotype but negative NGS. Of those assigned to the NGS/CG group, 27 (81.8%) were morphologically diagnosed as either MDS (54.5%), acute myeloid leukemia (AML) (15.2%), MDS/myeloproliferative neoplasms (MPN) (6.1%), or therapy related myeloid neoplasms (t-MNs) - MDS/AML (6.1%). Among the patients assigned to the NGS only group, NGS testing showed no abnormalities in 16 (94.1%) patients. One patient was found to carry a BRAF mutation and subsequently diagnosed with hairy cell leukemia. CG testing showed a normal karyotype in 16 (94.1%) patients. One patient was found to carry an inv(2)(p11.2q13) and was diagnosed as clonal B cell lymphocytosis. Conclusion: We proposed and validated a testing algorithm based on an "NGS first approach" with CG restricted to patients with morphological changes suggestive of MDS, in order to reduce the number of samples karyotyped. Overall, in patients with a morphological diagnosis of MDS, NGS defined genetic abnormalities in more patients (84.2%) compared to CG (47.4%) alone. Additional cytogenetic testing only detected chromosomal abnormalities in less than 10% of MDS cases. Most importantly, nearly no mutations or CG abnormalities were detected in patients without dysplastic features. Based on these results we estimated that we could reduce karyotyping by 10% to 20% for patients presenting with probable MDS or cytopenias of undetermined origin using an "NGS first approach". Further studies are warranted to validate and provide cost saving estimates of this approach. Disclosures Hsia: Amgen: Honoraria; Jansen: Honoraria, Membership on an entity's Board of Directors or advisory committees; Novartis: Honoraria, Membership on an entity's Board of Directors or advisory committees; Pfizer: Membership on an entity's Board of Directors or advisory committees.

Background: A common referral to hematology is for patients with suspected myelodysplastic syndrome (MDS) or cytopenias of undetermined origin. We recently implemented a Next Generation Sequencing (NGS) panel which covers a wide spectrum of genes related to the major myeloid disorders, including DNA based gene sequencing and RNA based gene fusion analysis, as a tier one clinical diagnostic test (Levy et al. Eur. J. Haematol 2019). We compared the diagnostic and prognostic information derived from conventional cytogenetics and NGS testing as well as the clinical impact on management in this patient group. Methods: We identified all new cases with suspected MDS or cytopenias of undetermined origin referred between January 2018 to February 2019 that had both NGS and cytogenetic testing at London Health Sciences Centre, a tertiary care centre servicing a population of approximately 2.5 million in Southwestern Ontario, Canada. From the retrospective review of electronic medical record, patient demographics, diagnosis and management were ascertained. Diagnosis was based on the 2016 WHO classification and the ICD-10.Previously reported definitions for ICUS, IDUS, CHIP, and CCUSwere also adopted (Bejar et al. Leukemia 2017). Patients not meeting these criteria were defined as either cytopenia not yet determined (NYD) or secondary to other systemic disease. The impact of NGS and cytogenetics results on diagnosis, prognosis, and management of each disease were assessed by referring to the latest National Comprehensive Cancer Network (NCCN) Clinical Practice Guidelines in Oncology. Either a bone marrow (BM) or peripheral blood (PB) sample from each patient was assessed by the Oncomine Myeloid NGS panel (Thermo-Fisher, MA, USA), which examines DNA sequence variants in 40 genes (17 full genes and 23 hotspot genes) along with an RNA-based panel of 29 fusion driver genes and their over 600 fusion partners. Patients' BM samples were also tested by the conventional cytogenetic G-banding method. Results: Of the 1100 samples assessed by NGS, 178 met the study inclusion criteria. Overall, 120 (67.4%) patients had both cytogenetics and NGS performed on their BM samples. Of those 120 patients, 41 (34.2%) had DNA mutations, 17 (14.2%) had cytogenetic abnormalities, 22 (18.3%) had both molecular and cytogenetic findings, and 40 (33.3%) had neither abnormality identified. NGS Information contributed in diagnosing 13 (10.8%) patients, while cytogenetics in 6 (5%) patients. In addition, of 38 patients who were diagnosed as MDS with good/intermediate risk cytogenetics, 24 (63.2%) harbored poor prognostic risk mutations as detected by NGS (Table), influencing the management of disease. Additionally, 22 (12.4%) of all patients had NGS testing using PB and cytogenetics using BM samples, and of these 13 (52.2%) patients had NGS abnormalities. Finally, 36 (20.2%) of all patients had only NGS testing by PB samples. Of those, 12 (33.3%) were found to harbor at least one gene mutation including ASXL1, TP53, ZRSR2, and STAG1 suggesting poor prognostic significance for diagnoses of MDS, or JAK2, SF3B1 which could support a disease specific diagnosis. Conclusion: NGS had enhanced diagnostic capabilities including classification of newly described entities such as ICUS or CCUS and more importantly yielded additional prognostic information compared to cytogenetics alone for this patient population. Cytogenetic findings were mainly aneuploidy or deletions, either clinically evident constitutional abnormalities such as Trisomy 21 and +X in Klinefelter syndrome, or loss of Y chromosome in a small proportion of cells and thus of questionable clinical significance. Based on this information consideration should be given to using the NGS panel as the primary molecular diagnostic and prognostic tool with karyotyping being reserved for subsets of patients being assessed for suspected MDS or cytopenias of undetermined origin. Disclosures Hsia: Amgen: Honoraria; Jansen: Honoraria, Membership on an entity's Board of Directors or advisory committees; Novartis: Honoraria, Membership on an entity's Board of Directors or advisory committees; Pfizer: Membership on an entity's Board of Directors or advisory committees.

In recent years, it has been reported that DNA-methylation regulatory gene mutation - mutation of the genes that regulate gene expression through DNA methylation - is observed with high frequency in acute myeloid leukemia. The objective of the present study was to elucidate the clinical characteristics and prognosis of acute myeloid leukemia with associated DNA-methylation regulatory gene mutation. The subjects were 308 patients with acute myeloid leukemia. DNA-methylation regulatory gene mutation was observed in 135 of the 308 cases (43.8%). acute myeloid leukemia associated with DNA-methylation regulatory gene mutation was more frequent in older patients ( p

We conducted a multicenter prospective study for evaluating the utility and prognostic markers of recombinant human soluble thrombomodulin (rTM) treatment for acute disseminated intravascular coagulation (DIC) by various types of hematologic malignancies. The study comprised 30 patients with DIC due to hematologic diseases without severe infection. DIC improved in 15 patients and 20 were alive on day 28. Univariate analyses showed that, in comparison with patients who had survived on day 28, patients who had not survived on day 28 showed significantly higher plasma levels of plasminogen activator inhibitor-I (PAI-I) and significantly lower plasma activity of a disintegrin and metalloproteinase with a thrombospondin Type 1 motif, member 13 (ADAMTS-13). Moreover, multivariate logistic regression analysis identified a significant association between plasma ADAMTS-13 activity before treatment and survival on day 28 (P = 0.034). In particular, patients with lower ADAMTS-13 activity (≤65%) had a poorer survival rate than those with a higher activity (P = 0.042). These findings suggest that the plasma ADAMTS-13 activity at the time of DIC diagnosis might help to predict the prognosis of patients treated with rTM for DIC associated with hematologic malignancies. Am. J. Hematol., 2012. © 2011 Wiley-Liss, Inc.

Galectins comprise a family of animal lectins that differ in their affinity for β-galactosides. Galectin-9 (Gal-9) is a tandem-repeat-type galectin that was recently shown to function as a ligand for T-cell immunoglobin domain and mucin domain-3 (Tim-3) expressed on terminally differentiated CD4(+) Th1 cells. Gal-9 modulates immune reactions, including the induction of apoptosis in Th1 cells. In this study, we investigated the effects of Gal-9 in murine models of acute GVH disease (aGVHD). First, we demonstrated that recombinant human Gal-9 inhibit MLR in a dose-dependent manner, involving both Ca(2+) influx and apoptosis in T cells. Next, we revealed that recombinant human Gal-9 significantly inhibit the progression of aGVHD in murine BM transplantation models. In conclusion, Gal-9 ameliorates aGVHD, possibly by inducing T-cell apoptosis, suggesting that gal-9 may be an attractive candidate for the treatment of aGVHD.

We conducted a retrospective collaborative investigation of bortezomib (Bor) plus dexamethasone (Dex) therapy (BD Tx) for 88 relapsed or refractory (Rel/Ref) MM patients at six institutes. One cycle BD Tx comprised of Bor (1.3 mg/m²/day) on days 1, 4, 8 and 11, and Dex on days 1, 2, 4, 5, 8, 9, 11 and 12, every 21 days, and the mean number of BD Tx cycles was 3. The overall response rate was 66.9%, the median overall survival (OS) was 510 days, and the median progression-free survival (PFS) was 113 days. Attainment of partial response (PR) with the first course of BD Tx associated with the longer OS and PFS and late good responder, while no patient who did not achieve PR with the first cycle attained better than very good PR (VGPR) with the subsequent BD Tx. Patient age of less than 64 years old also associated with the longer OS and PFS. In addition, both an earlier disease stage and Dex dosage had a significant impact on OS, while the attainment of VGPR within 2 cycles had a significantly longer PFS. Earlier BD Tx courses may be predictive for the subsequent therapeutic pathway of Rel/Ref MM.

Purpose: β-catenin is the downstream effector of the Wnt signaling pathway, and it regulates cell proliferation. β-catenin overexpression correlates positively with prognosis in several types of malignancies. We herein assessed its effects on growth of multiple myeloma cells using a xenograft model. Experimental Design: We first investigated the expression of β-catenin in multiple myeloma cell lines and multiple myeloma cells obtained from patients. Next, we investigated the growth inhibitory effects of β-catenin small interfering RNA on the growth of multiple myeloma cells in vivo. Six-week-old male BALB/c nu/nu mice were inoculated s.c. in the right flank with 5 × 106 RPMI8226 cells, followed by s.c. injections of β-catenin small interfering RNA, scramble small interfering RNA, or PBS/atelocollagen complex twice a week for a total of eight injections. Results: Significantly higher levels of β-catenin expression were observed in multiple myeloma cell lines and in samples from patients with multiple myeloma than those found in mononuclear cells obtained from healthy volunteers. In in vivo experiments, no inhibitory effects were observed following treatment with scramble small interfering RNA or PBS/atelocollagen complexes, whereas treatment with β-catenin small interfering RNA/atelocollagen complex significantly inhibited growth of multiple myeloma tumors (P < 0.05). Conclusions: β-catenin small interfering RNA treatment inhibited the growth of multiple myeloma tumors in a xenograft model. To our knowledge, this is the first report showing that the treatment with β-catenin small interfering RNA produces an inhibitory effects on growth of hematologic malignancies in vivo. Because treatment with β-catenin small interfering RNA inhibited growth of multiple myeloma cells, β-catenin is the attractive novel target for treating multiple myeloma.

Dasatinib, a 2nd-generation tyrosine kinase inhibitor (TKI), can specifically induce large granular lymphocytes (LGL) in some patients with Philadelphia chromosome (Ph)-positive leukemia. To investigate the properties of the induced LGLs, we performed prospective and longitudinal analyses. From Feb 2011 to Jan 2013, a total of 17 patients with Ph-positive leukemia who were previously untreated or refractory to imatinib were enrolled. T cell receptor (TCR)-γ/δ gene rearrangements and phenotypic profiles of lymphocytes were examined before and during administration of dasatinib. LGL lymphocytosis was observed in half of the dasatinib-treated cases (LGL+ group), showing a relation to increased achievement of complete cytogenetic response within 6 months. The phenotypes of the increased lymphocytes were revealed to be mostly natural killer cells. In the LGL+ group, clonal TCR-γ gene rearrangements were frequently detected at diagnosis (six of nine cases) and persisted during therapy, compared with only two of eight in the LGL- group. The proportion of regulatory T cells to CD4+ T cells at diagnosis was lower in the LGL+ compared with the LGL- group (median 4.2 vs. 6.6 %), and this disparity was sustained throughout the therapeutic period. These results demonstrate that immunological condition at diagnosis may affect LGL lymphocytosis in some dasatinib-treated patients.