Byrd, David R.

Introduction: Vitamin B12 deficiency is a common nutritional issue associated with mild anemia and neurological deficits. While rare, hemolytic anemia and low platelet count can be complications of this deficiency, often misdiagnosed as thrombotic microangiopathy (TMA), specifically thrombotic thrombocytopenic purpura (TTP). Pseudo TMA features can occur with B12 deficiency and can be effectively treated with vitamin B12 supplementation. In contrast, true TMA requires plasmapheresis. This systematic review aims to differentiate between pseudo TMA and TMA cases through an analysis of published case reports, providing valuable insights to avoid unnecessary treatments. Methods: We performed systematic review from Pubmed, Web of Science, and Scopus database. Twin independent reviewers (SY and BL) performed the screening using Covidence. Search keywords included “((hemolytic anemia) AND (vitamin B12 deficiency)) OR ((cobalamin deficiency) AND (hemolytic anemia)) Filters: English” for Pubmed, “(((ALL=(Cobalamin deficiency)) OR ALL=(vitamin B12 Deficiency))) AND ALL=(hemolytic anemia) Filter: English” for Web of Science and “( vitamin AND b12 AND deficiency OR cobalamin AND deficiency ) AND hemolytic AND anemia AND ( LIMIT-TO ( LANGUAGE , ”English“ ))” from Scopus. Only case reports in English with full-text availability and adult subjects were selected. Cases without final clinical outcome after treatment were excluded. After a comprehensive review, we identified 43 case reports and series with a total 53 patients that fulfilled our criteria. The details of selection process is illustrated in the prisma diagram (Figure 1). Results: The majority of cases involved males with low hemoglobin and platelet counts upon admission. Evidence of hemolysis was observed, indicated by increased lactate dehydrogenase (LDH), undetectable haptoglobin, and elevated or normal total and direct bilirubin levels. Peripheral blood films confirmed the presence of hemolytic anemia. Due to the co-occurrence of thrombocytopenia and hemolytic anemia, some cases were initially diagnosed as TTP, leading to the initiation of plasmapheresis. In 16 out of 53 reported case reports/series, patient received plasmapheresis. However, low reticulocyte index and normal ADAMTS 13 suggested an alternative diagnosis. Once ADAMTS 13 levels were normal, plasmapheresis was discontinued as TTP was ruled out. Diagnosis of B12 deficiency was confirmed by low B12 levels and elevated methylmalonic acid (MMA) levels. Leading cause for B12 deficiency were pernicious anemia in 28/53 cases, followed by dietary deficiency, and malabsorption due to surgery. Some patients also exhibiting concurrent iron deficiency anemia and folate deficiency. Treatment with subcutaneous B12 injections showed improvement in hemolysis as early as one week. Conclusion: Many cases of Vitamin B12 deficiency presenting with hemolytic anemia and thrombocytopenia are mistakenly diagnosed as TTP, leading to unnecessary and expensive plasmapheresis. Routine B12 level checks should be performed in all patients with hemolytic anemia, as B12 deficiency can be rapidly diagnosed and effectively treated, avoiding misdiagnoses and unnecessary interventions associated with TTP. The short turnover time for B12 levels (hours) compared to ADAMTS 13 activity (1-2 days) further supports the importance of routine B12 assessment in these patients.

Abstract The American Joint Committee on Cancer (AJCC) staging manual has become the benchmark for classifying patients with cancer, defining prognosis, and determining the best treatment approaches. Many view the primary role of the tumor, lymph node, metastasis (TNM) system as that of a standardized classification system for evaluating cancer at a population level in terms of the extent of disease, both at initial presentation and after surgical treatment, and the overall impact of improvements in cancer treatment. The rapid evolution of knowledge in cancer biology and the discovery and validation of biologic factors that predict cancer outcome and response to treatment with better accuracy have led some cancer experts to question the utility of a TNM‐based approach in clinical care at an individualized patient level. In the Eighth Edition of the AJCC Cancer Staging Manual , the goal of including relevant, nonanatomic (including molecular) factors has been foremost, although changes are made only when there is strong evidence for inclusion. The editorial board viewed this iteration as a proactive effort to continue to build the important bridge from a “population‐based” to a more “personalized” approach to patient classification, one that forms the conceptual framework and foundation of cancer staging in the era of precision molecular oncology. The AJCC promulgates best staging practices through each new edition in an effort to provide cancer care providers with a powerful, knowledge‐based resource for the battle against cancer. In this commentary, the authors highlight the overall organizational and structural changes as well as “what's new” in the Eighth Edition. It is hoped that this information will provide the reader with a better understanding of the rationale behind the aggregate proposed changes and the exciting developments in the upcoming edition. CA Cancer J Clin 2017;67:93–99. © 2017 American Cancer Society.

Current strategies for the immunotherapy of melanoma include augmentation of the immune response to tumor antigens represented by melanosomal proteins such as tyrosinase, gp100, and MART-1. The possibility that intentional targeting of tumor antigens representing normal proteins can result in autoimmune toxicity has been postulated but never demonstrated previously in humans. In this study, we describe a patient with metastatic melanoma who developed inflammatory lesions circumscribing pigmented areas of skin after an infusion of MART-1–specific CD8+ T cell clones. Analysis of the infiltrating lymphocytes in skin and tumor biopsies using T cell–specific peptide–major histocompatibility complex tetramers demonstrated a localized predominance of MART-1–specific CD8+ T cells (>28% of all CD8 T cells) that was identical to the infused clones (as confirmed by sequencing of the complementarity-determining region 3). In contrast to skin biopsies obtained from the patient before T cell infusion, postinfusion biopsies demonstrated loss of MART-1 expression, evidence of melanocyte damage, and the complete absence of melanocytes in affected regions of the skin. This study provides, for the first time, direct evidence in humans that antigen-specific immunotherapy can target not only antigen-positive tumor cells in vivo but also normal tissues expressing the shared tumor antigen.