Back to Authors

D'Souza, Anita

0000-0002-1092-5643

Mayo Clinic

Division of Hematology/Oncology, Department of Medicine, Medical College of Wisconsin, Milwaukee, Wisconsin, USA.

Citations 31

Outcomes after autologous hematopoietic cell transplantation in POEMS syndrome and comparison with multiple myeloma

Blood Advances | May 4, 2022 | Volume: 6 | Issue: 13 | Pages: 3991-3995

10.1182/bloodadvances.2022007218 | PMID 35507742

Outcomes of upfront autologous hematopoietic cell transplantation in patients with multiple myeloma who are 75 years old or older

Cancer | August 10, 2021 | Volume: 127 | Issue: 22 | Pages: 4233-4239

10.1002/cncr.33831 | PMID 34374445

BackgroundConsolidative autologous hematopoietic stem cell transplantation (AHCT) is commonly used for patients with multiple myeloma (MM). We studied AHCT use and outcomes in patients with MM ≥75 years old.MethodsPatients with MM ≥75 years old receiving AHCT between 2013 and 2017 in the United States were identified using the Center for International Blood and Marrow Transplant Research database. Relapse and/or progression (REL), progression‐free survival (PFS), and overall survival (OS) were modeled using Cox proportional hazards models. Covariates used were age, sex, Karnofsky performance score (KPS), HCT‐comorbidity index (HCT‐CI), International Staging System and/or Durie‐Salmon stage, high‐risk cytogenetics, melphalan dose, and disease status at and 1 year after transplant. AHCT utilization rate using the Surveillance, Epidemiology, and End Results database was used to estimate specific incidence among ≥75 years old by race and gender.ResultsOf 360 patients, 63% were male, 84% were White, 56% had KPS <90, and 57% had HCT‐CI ≥3. The 100‐day transplant‐related mortality was 1% (0%‐2%) with a 2‐year REL rate of 27% (95% confidence interval [CI], 22%‐33%), PFS of 66% (95% CI, 60%‐72%), and OS of 83% (95% CI, 78%‐87%). On multivariate analysis, only high‐risk cytogenetics was associated with REL risk and decreased PFS. In White males, transplant utilization rate was 5.2%‐5.8% compared to 3.5%‐4.0% in African American males (P = .02). There was 3.37‐3.79% transplant utilization in White females compared to 1.88‐2.12% in African American females (P < .01).ConclusionsThe use of AHCT was associated with excellent 2‐year outcomes in this selected MM population ≥75 years old. Transplant utilization for patients ≥75 years old remains low with significant racial and gender disparities.
Development of a Conceptual Framework of Patient-reported Outcomes in Light Chain Amyloidosis: A Qualitative Study

No container title available | March 1, 2021 | Volume: No volume available | Issue: No issue available | Pages: No page available

10.21203/rs.3.rs-272559/v1

Abstract Background Light chain (AL) amyloidosis is a plasma cell neoplasm associated with high early mortality and severe morbidity that can cause severe disability. We explored the impact of AL amyloidosis on symptoms and well-being from the perspectives of patients and health care providers who regularly care for AL patients. We intended to develop a conceptual understanding of patient-reported outcomes in AL amyloidosis to identify the context of use and concept of interest for a clinical outcome assessments tool in this disease.Method Twenty patients and 10 professionals were interviewed. Patient interviews captured the spectrum of amyloidosis experience including time from diagnosis, type of organ involvement, and presence and type of treatment received. Interviews with professionals included physicians, advanced practice providers, registered nurse, and a patient advocate; these interviews covered similar topics. Results The impact of AL amyloidosis on patients’ life was multidimensional, with highly subjective perceptions of normality and meaning. Four major themes from patients and experts included diagnosis of AL amyloidosis, living with AL amyloidosis, symptom burden, and social roles. Barriers to patient-reported outcomes data collection in patients were additionally explored from experts. The themes provide a comprehensive understanding of the important experiences of symptom burden and its impact on daily life from AL amyloidosis patients’ and from the perspectives of professionals who care for patients with AL amyloidosis. Conclusion These findings further the conceptual understanding and identification of a preliminary model of concept of interest for development of a clinical outcome assessments tool for AL amyloidosis.
Novel prognostic scoring system for autologous hematopoietic cell transplantation in multiple myeloma

British Journal of Haematology | October 23, 2020 | Volume: 191 | Issue: 3 | Pages: 442-452

10.1111/bjh.16987 | PMID 33094839

AbstractWe studied 2,528 patients with upfront autologous haematopoietic cell transplantation (AHCT) for multiple myeloma (MM) from 2008–2017 to develop a prognostic model to predict outcomes. High‐risk cytogenetics included t(4;14), t(14;16), t(14;20), del13q on karyotype, del17p, +1q or 1pdel. A Cox model identified factors prognostic of progression/relapse in a training subset (n = 1,246). A weighted score using these factors was assigned to a validation cohort (n = 774). Presence of high‐risk cytogenetics [hazard ratio, (HR) 1·68 (1·3–2·17)] and pre‐AHCT bone marrow plasma cells (BMPCs) ≥10% [1·68 (1·33–2·12)] were assigned 4 points each; albumin at diagnosis <3·5 g/dl [1·31 (1·07–1·61)] 2; standard risk cytogenetics 1, and no cytogenetics abnormality, BMPCs <10% at AHCT and albumin ≥3·5 g/dl at diagnosis 0 points each. A three‐category system with low risk (0–3), intermediate risk (4–8) and high risk (9–10) showed 3‐year progression‐free survival in the low vs. intermediate vs. high risk of 58% (95% CI: 52–63) vs. 49% (95% CI: 43–56) vs. 31% (95% CI: 12–51), P < 0.001 respectively, and 3‐year OS in low vs. intermediate vs. high risk of 88% (95% CI: 84–91) vs. 81% (95% CI: 76–86) vs. 64% (95% CI: 39–80); P < 0·001. Our prognostic scoring system can identify MM patients at risk for early relapse after AHCT.
African Americans with translocation t(11;14) have superior survival after autologous hematopoietic cell transplantation for multiple myeloma in comparison with Whites in the United States

Cancer | September 23, 2020 | Volume: 127 | Issue: 1 | Pages: 82-92

10.1002/cncr.33208 | PMID 32966625

BackgroundMultiple myeloma (MM) with the translocation t(11;14) may have inferior outcomes in comparison with other standard‐risk MM, and it has been suggested to portend a worse prognosis in African Americans in comparison with Whites. This study used the Center for International Blood and Marrow Transplant Research (CIBMTR) database to examine the impact of t(11;14) on the clinical outcomes of patients with MM of African American and White descent.MethodsThis study evaluated 3538 patients who underwent autologous hematopoietic cell transplantation (autoHCT) for MM from 2008 to 2016 and were reported to the CIBMTR. Patients were analyzed in 4 groups: African Americans with t(11;14) (n = 117), African Americans without t(11;14) (n = 968), Whites with t(11;14) (n = 266), and Whites without t(11;14) (n = 2187).ResultsAfrican Americans with t(11;14) were younger, had lower Karnofsky scores, and had more advanced stage MM with a higher Hematopoietic Cell Transplantation–Comorbidity Index (HCT‐CI). Fewer African Americans with t(11;14) (21%) had a coexistent high‐risk marker in comparison with Whites with t(11;14) (27%). In a multivariate analysis, race and t(11;14) had no association with progression‐free survival. However, overall survival was superior among African Americans with t(11;14) in comparison with Whites with t(11;14) (hazard ratio, 0.53; 95% confidence interval, 0.30‐0.93; P = .03). Survival was also associated with female sex, stage, time from diagnosis to transplant, a low HCT‐CI, and receipt of maintenance.ConclusionsRace may have a differential impact on the survival of patients with t(11;14) MM who undergo autoHCT and needs to be further studied.
Age no bar: A CIBMTR analysis of elderly patients undergoing autologous hematopoietic cell transplantation for multiple myeloma

Cancer | September 23, 2020 | Volume: 126 | Issue: 23 | Pages: 5077-5087

10.1002/cncr.33171 | PMID 32965680

BackgroundUpfront autologous hematopoietic stem cell transplantation (AHCT) remains an important therapy in the management of patients with multiple myeloma (MM), a disease of older adults.MethodsThe authors investigated the outcomes of AHCT in patients with MM who were aged ≥70 years. The Center for International Blood and Marrow Transplant Research (CIBMTR) database registered 15,999 patients with MM in the United States within 12 months of diagnosis during 2013 through 2017; a total of 2092 patients were aged ≥70 years. Nonrecurrence mortality (NRM), disease recurrence and/or progression (relapse; REL), progression‐free survival (PFS), and overall survival (OS) were modeled using Cox proportional hazards models with age at transplantation as the main effect. Because of the large sample size, a P value <.01 was considered to be statistically significant a priori.ResultsAn increase in AHCT was noted in 2017 (28%) compared with 2013 (15%) among patients aged ≥70 years. Although approximately 82% of patients received melphalan (Mel) at a dose of 200 mg/m2 overall, 58% of the patients aged ≥70 years received Mel at a dose of 140 mg/m2. On multivariate analysis, patients aged ≥70 years demonstrated no difference with regard to NRM (hazard ratio [HR] 1.3; 99% confidence interval [99% CI], 1‐1.7 [P = .06]), REL (HR, 1.03; 99% CI, 0.9‐1.1 [P = 0.6]), PFS (HR, 1.06; 99% CI, 1‐1.2 [P = 0.2]), and OS (HR, 1.2; 99% CI, 1‐1.4 [P = .02]) compared with the reference group (those aged 60‐69 years). In patients aged ≥70 years, Mel administered at a dose of 140 mg/m2 was found to be associated with worse outcomes compared with Mel administered at a dose of 200 mg/m2, including day 100 NRM (1% [95% CI, 1%‐2%] vs 0% [95% CI, 0%‐1%]; P = .003]), 2‐year PFS (64% [95% CI, 60%‐67%] vs 69% [95% CI, 66%‐73%]; P = .003), and 2‐year OS (85% [95% CI, 82%‐87%] vs 89% [95% CI, 86%‐91%]; P = .01]), likely representing frailty.ConclusionsThe results of the current study demonstrated that AHCT remains an effective consolidation therapy among patients with MM across all age groups.
The use of PROMIS patient-reported outcomes (PROs) to inform light chain (AL) amyloid disease severity at diagnosis

Amyloid | January 23, 2020 | Volume: 27 | Issue: 2 | Pages: 111-118

10.1080/13506129.2020.1713743 | PMID 31971467

Drug-Induced Amyloidosis: A Proteomic Insight Into 52 Cases

Blood | October 14, 2019 | Volume: 122 | Issue: 21 | Pages: 1871-1871

10.1182/blood.v122.21.1871.1871

Abstract The amyloidoses are heterogeneous diseases associated with the deposition of insoluble proteins or peptides with a characteristic beta-diffraction pattern extracellularly. At the current time, over 27 different extracellular fibril proteins are known to cause disease in humans. Iatrogenic amyloidosis is a rare, often not sought diagnosis. On occasion, patients with drug induced amyloidosis can present with other systemic features reminiscent of systemic immunoglobulin-derived (AL) amyloidosis, and may present a diagnostic challenge. Treatment of the latter often involves chemotherapy and/or stem cell transplantation, while the former tends to remain localized and needs local therapy; thus accurate diagnosis is critical. To this end, proteomic analysis of amyloid tissue has proven to be an invaluable tool in amyloid typing. We have analyzed the biochemical composition of iatrogenic amyloid using laser capture/tandem mass spectrometry (LC-MS/MS)-based proteomic analysis in 52 cases of insulin and enfuvirtide (Fuzeon¨) associated amyloidosis. In brief, 10-μm-thick sections of formalin-fixed paraffin-embedded tissues were stained with Congo red. Congo red positively staining tissue as viewed with a fluorescent light source appeared bright red. Positive areas were dissected using laser microdissection to a volume of at least 60,000 μm2; three microdissections were analyzed for each case. The microdissected material was collected into 0.5-ml microcentrifuge tube caps containing 35 μL Tris/EDTA/0.002% Zwittergent buffer. Microdissected fragments were subjected to a heat-mediated antigen retrieval method (98C for 90minutes) before being denatured via sonication and subsequently digested into tryptic peptides overnight using 0.5ug of trypsin. The resulting digests were then analyzed with nanoflow LC-MS/MS. The MS/MS spectra of each case were matched against a composite protein sequence database using three different search algorithms (Sequest, X!Tandem, and Mascot). The composite database contained the human SwissProt entries but was also augmented with known immunoglobulin variant domains, known amyloidogenic mutations from literature, the enfuvirtide amino acid sequence, and common contaminants. Reversed protein sequences were appended to the database for estimating the false discovery rates of the identifications. The peptide identification results were filtered using Scaffold software (Proteome Software, Portland, OR) and then filtered peptides were assembled into protein identifications. Candidate proteins with at least one high-confident (probability of identification &gt;90%) unique peptide identification and at least four MS/MS spectral matches were considered for clinical interpretation. For each case, we created a personalized proteomic profile that lists all the confident protein identifications in each of the microdissection along with their respective MS/MS spectral counts. The number of MS/MS spectra matching to a protein is considered as a semi-quantitative measure of its abundance. The most abundant amyloidogenic protein detected across all microdissections and as interpreted in the context of the clinical history is considered to be the amyloid subtype. Figure 1 shows the results of insulin amyloidosis. Figure 2 shows the results of enfuvirtide amyloidosis. Amyloid deposits are shown to be composed of the recombinant drug in addition to amyloid precursor proteins such as apolipoprotein A-I, A-IV, E and serum amyloid P (SAP).Figure 1. Insulin-associated amyloidosisFigure 1. Insulin-associated amyloidosisFigure 2Enfuvirtide (Fuzeon¨)-associated amyloidosisFigure 2. Enfuvirtide (Fuzeon¨)-associated amyloidosis In conclusion, we show the biochemical composition of all known drug-induced iatrogenic amyloidosis and provide the utility of proteomic analysis in elucidating amyloid subtyping for accurate diagnosis and management. Legend: A spectral count number of greater than 4 is significant. The green boxes denote protein identification at a probability of over 95%, and yellow 80-94%. In figure 1, insulin (# 2) and in figure 2, enfuvirtide (#5) are shown in abundance, additionally other amyloid precursors such as apolipoproteins A-IV, E, A-I and SAP are also seen. Disclosures: No relevant conflicts of interest to declare.
Outcomes of Medicare-age eligible NHL patients receiving RIC allogeneic transplantation: a CIBMTR analysis

Blood Advances | April 23, 2018 | Volume: 2 | Issue: 8 | Pages: 933-940

10.1182/bloodadvances.2018018531 | PMID 29685953

Key Points There was no difference in overall survival after allogeneic transplant between patients aged 55-64 years and patients ≥65 years. Age alone should not be a determinant for allogeneic transplant eligibility among older non-Hodgkin lymphoma patients.
Tandem high-dose chemotherapy and autologous hematopoietic stem cell transplantation (SCT) compared to single SCT for relapsed/refractory germ cell tumors (GCT).

Journal of Clinical Oncology | February 26, 2018 | Volume: 36 | Issue: 6_suppl | Pages: 572-572

10.1200/jco.2018.36.6_suppl.572

572 Background: Single-center observational studies have established the use of single or tandem SCT to salvage relapsed GCT but randomized trials are lacking. We analyzed outcomes and prognostic factors in 2,395 male SCT recipients for relapsed GCT between 1990 and 2015. Methods: Recipients of single or tandem SCT reported to the Center for International Blood and Marrow Transplant Research were identified. Outcomes were compared by SCT year: 1990-94 (N = 288), 1995-99 (N = 351), 2000-04 (N = 376), 2005-09 (N = 509) and 2010-15 (N = 871). A recent subset (n = 267, 2000-2015) with detailed disease- and transplant-related data was further analyzed with a multivariate (MVA) Cox proportional hazards model. Results: Median age at SCT was 31 (11-76) years and 49% received SCT within 12 months of diagnosis consistent with early relapse/primary refractory GCT. 26% had primary extragonadal GCT; 1,167 (49%) had intent to tandem transplant (TT). The median follow up was 51 (3-313) months. Day 100 non-relapse mortality was statistically similar at 8% in 1990-94 (vs. 4% in 2010-15) but 3-year progression-free survival (PFS) improved from 24 (18-31)% in 1990-94 to 47 (43-50)% in 2010-15 (p < 0.0001) and 3-year survival (OS) from 35 (29-40)% to 54 (50-57)% in 2010-15 (p < 0.0001). Compared with single SCT, TT recipients were younger 31 (16-62) vs 34 (13-76), with lower Hematopoietic Cell Transplantation-Comorbidity Index, more likely to undergo SCT after 1 line of chemotherapy (28% vs 9%), and within 1 year of diagnosis (51% vs 38%). TT was preferred over single SCT over time (48% of SCT were TT in 2000-04 vs. 81% in 2010-15). In MVA, non-seminoma histology, residual tumor at SCT, receipt of > 1 line of pre-SCT chemotherapy and single SCT (vs. TT), were associated with worse PFS and OS. Year of SCT was not significant when adjusted for these covariates. Conclusions: In this large longitudinal cohort, improvements in PFS and OS were observed in recent years. SCT earlier in disease course and tandem SCT were associated with superior outcomes. These data involving a large cohort reported from 225 centers confirm specialized centers’ date in a real-world setting.