Abstract We describe a series of 102 patients diagnosed from January 1, 1990 to December 31, 2015 with Type 1 monoclonal cryoglobulinemia (MoC). Symptoms were seen in 89 (87%) patients, including: cutaneous symptoms in 64 (63%) patients, with purpura (n = 43, 42%) and ulcers/gangrene (n = 35, 34%) being most common; neurological findings in 33 (32%) patients, most frequently sensory neuropathy (n = 24, 24%); vasomotor symptoms, mainly Raynaud's phenomenon in 25 (25%); arthralgias in 24 (24%); and renal manifestations, primarily glomerulonephritis in 14 (14%) patients. An underlying lymphoproliferative disorder was identified in 94 (92%) subjects; MGUS—39, myeloma—20, lymphoplasmacytic lymphoma—21 and others—14. Treatment was initiated in 73 (72%) patients, primarily for cryoglobulinemia‐related symptoms in 57. Treatment regimens consisted of: steroids ± alkylating agents in 29 (40%), novel myeloma therapies in 16 (22%), rituximab with alkylating agents in 12 (16%) and rituximab ± steroids in 11 (15%) patients; 22 patients received plasmapheresis. Six patients underwent autologous stem cell transplant. Cryocrit at treatment initiation, change in cryocrit and time to nadir cryocrit were predictive of symptom improvement. Treatment directed toward the underlying clonal disorder resulted in improvement (n = 47) or stabilization (n = 16) of symptoms in the majority of patients and disappearance of cryoglobulin in over one‐half.
Sex-based disparities in venous thromboembolism outcomes: A National Inpatient Sample (NIS)-based analysis
Vascular Medicine | March 20, 2017 | Volume: 22 | Issue: 2 | Pages: 121-127
Venous thromboembolism (VTE) contributes to significant morbidity, mortality, and socioeconomic burden. There is a paucity of literature regarding sex-based sociodemographic differences in VTE presentation and short-term outcomes. We aimed to compare clinical outcomes between men and women hospitalized for VTE management. We performed a retrospective analysis using data from the National Inpatient Sample (NIS) database from 2012 to 2013. Inclusion criteria were age 18 years and older and a primary discharge diagnosis of VTE. Sociodemographic features and medical comorbidities were analyzed, as were hospital length of stay and in-hospital mortality rates. A total of 107,896 patients met the inclusion criteria; 53% were female. Median age was 65 years (interquartile range 51–77) and women were older than men (65 vs 62 years, p<0.001). There were significant differences between men and women with respect to race, primary insurance payer and medical comorbidities, and small differences with respect to VTE location. Female sex was associated with a small but significantly longer hospital length of stay (mean ratio 1.04, 95% CI 1.03–1.05, p<0.001) but no significant difference in in-hospital mortality (2.2% vs 2.1%, p=0.15). In a multivariate model, there was no significant difference between women and men with respect to hospital length of stay or in-hospital mortality. In conclusion, we used data from the NIS to study over 100,000 patients hospitalized for VTE, and identified several sex-based disparities in sociodemographic factors and location of VTE. However, in a multivariable analysis correcting for these factors, sex was not associated with significant differences in clinical outcomes.
Treatment patterns and outcome following initial relapse or refractory disease in patients with systemic light chain amyloidosis
American Journal of Hematology | March 17, 2017 | Volume: 92 | Issue: 6 | Pages: 549-554
AbstractWe analyzed the outcomes following initial relapse or refractory disease in systemic light chain amyloidosis (AL) and the impact of type of therapy employed.A total of 1327 patients with AL seen at Mayo Clinic within 90 days of diagnosis, between 2006 and 2015, were reviewed. The study included 366 patients experiencing a documented hematological or organ relapse or refractory disease requiring start of second line therapy. Overall survival (OS) and time to next treatment (TTNT) were calculated from start of second line treatment.The median time to require second line treatment was 16.2 months (1‐93) from the start of first line therapy. At relapse, patients received proteasome inhibitors (PI; 45.1%), immunomodulators (IMiD; 22.7%), alkylators (9%), PI and IMiD combination (4.1%), autologous transplant (3.8%), steroids and other therapies (4.9%). Among these, 124 (33.9%) required change or reinstitution of therapy. The median time to require third line treatment was 31 months (95% CI; 24, 40.5) and the median overall survival (OS) was 38.8 months (95% CI; 29.6, 52.6) from the start of second line treatment. Retreatment with same therapy at relapse significantly reduced TTNT (22 m vs 32.3 m; P = .01) as compared to different therapy; but did not have any impact OS (30.8 m vs 51.1 m; P = .5). In conclusion, this study provides important information about outcomes of patients with AL who require second line treatment for relapsed/refractory disease . Treatment with a different therapy at relapse improves time to next therapy but does not impact OS.
Overuse of organ biopsies in immunoglobulin light chain amyloidosis (AL): the consequence of failure of early recognition
Annals of Medicine | March 8, 2017 | Volume: 49 | Issue: 7 | Pages: 545-551
522 Background: Metformin inhibits mTOR and downstream pathways involved in cell proliferation and survival by inducing AMPK activation. Although its use has been associated with decreased risk of colorectal cancer (CRC), the effect of metformin on cancer related mortality is unclear. We performed a meta-analysis of published observational studies evaluating metformin use in patients with CRC and its association with overall and CRC-specific survival. Methods: Through a systematic search of PubMed and conference presentations (cut-off: August 2013), we identified 8 observational studies (18,537 total patients with CRC; 6242 CRC patients with DM) reporting the association between metformin use and survival after diagnosis of CRC. Summary hazard ratio (HR) with 95% confidence intervals (CI) was estimated using the random effects model, and heterogeneity was measured using the inconsistency index (I2). Results: On meta-analysis, metformin use was associated with a 34% reduction in mortality in CRC patients as compared to non-use (adjusted HR, 0.66; 95% CI, 0.54-0.81), albeit with high heterogeneity (I2=66.9%). After exclusion of one study, which contributed to considerable heterogeneity, a 28% reduction in mortality was considered a more conservative, consistent effect estimate (adjusted HR, 0.72; 95% CI, 0.64-0.81), with minimal heterogeneity (I2=16.2%). On restricting analysis only to patients with DM, use of metformin (vs non-use) was associated with decreased all-cause mortality (6 studies; adjusted HR, 0.63; 95% CI, 0.49-0.81) and CRC-specific mortality (3 studies; adjusted HR, 0.66; 95% CI, 0.50-0.87). Conclusions: Based on meta-analysis of observational studies, the use of metformin in diabetic patients with CRC appears to be associated with reduced all-cause mortality and CRC-specific mortality. Further prospective investigation of metformin’s effect on outcome in CRC patients is warranted.
Disparity in early mortality among racial groups with multiple myeloma in the United States: A National Cancer Data Base study of 108,352 patients.
Journal of Clinical Oncology | February 24, 2017 | Volume: 34 | Issue: 7_suppl | Pages: 311-311
311 Background: Previous population-based studies have shown variations in disease incidence and overall survival (OS) among multiple myeloma (MM) patients (pts) from different ethnic and racial backgrounds. However, the impact of race and ethnicity on early mortality (EM) or death in the first year after the diagnosis of MM is less well known. Methods: Pts with MM diagnosed from 2000-2011 were identified in the NCDB. We obtained data associated with socio-demographics, type and location of care facility, as well as the use of autologous stem cell transplant (ASCT) as an initial treatment option. Two cohorts were created based on the use of ASCT: 1) The group who received an upfront ASCT and 2) Pts who were 75 years or older who are unlikely to have ever received an ASCT. The rate of early mortality (EM) was estimated using the 1-year OS and assessed for all pts based on racial/ethnic background and the use of ASCT in their therapy. Results: There were a total of 108,352 pts who were included in this analysis. The median age of this cohort was 65 years (Range: 20 – 90). Of these 58,223 (54%) were male. The racial distributions of these cohorts were as follows: 78,589 (73%) White non-Hispanic (WNH), 21,292 (20%) Black non-Hispanic (BNH), 1,943 (2%) Asian Pacific-Islander (API), 293 (< 1%) Native-American (NA) and 6,235 (5%) Hispanics-any race (HIS). The estimated 1-yr OS (95% CI) was 71% (71 – 72) for WNH, 74% (73 – 74) for BNH, 77% (75 – 79) for API, 73% (68 – 78) for NA and 75% (74 – 76) for HIS. Amongst patients who received an upfront ASCT, the estimated 1-yr OS (95% CI) was 97% (97 – 98) for WNH (Reference), 98% (97 – 98) for BNH (P = 0.99), 99% (99 – 100) for API (P = 0.96) and 98% (97 – 99) for HIS (P = 0.99). Whereas amongst pts who likely never received an ASCT (75 years or older), the estimated 1-yr OS (95% CI) was 55% (54 – 56) WNH (Reference), 57% (56 – 59) for BNH (P = 0.03), 62% (58 – 67) for API (P = 0.02), 55% (43 – 72) for NA (P = 0.99) and 55% (52 – 58) for HIS (P = 0.99). Conclusions: In general, WNHs have a worse 1-yr OS compared to BNH and API. However, this disparity appears significant only among pts unlikely to get an ASCT. Further studies are required to identify explanations for such disparate outcomes based on race and use of ASCT.
Nomograms for overall survival (OS) and progression-free survival (PFS) in metastatic colorectal cancer (mCRC): Construction from 19,678 ARCAD patients.
Journal of Clinical Oncology | February 24, 2017 | Volume: 33 | Issue: 3_suppl | Pages: 659-659
659 Background: Prospective survival prediction of patients with metastatic colorectal cancer is difficult. Prognosis estimation based on readily available clinicopathologic factors has the potential to inform clinical practice and improve risk stratification for clinical trials. We constructed prognostic nomograms for OS and PFS in mCRC using the multi-trial ARCAD database. Methods: Data from 19,678 mCRC pts accrued to 24 first line randomized phase III clinical trials since 1997 were used to construct and validate Cox models for PFS and OS, stratified by treatment arm within each study. Candidate variables included age, gender, BMI, performance status, colon vs. rectal cancer, prior chemotherapy, number of metastatic sites, sites of metastases (liver, lung, lymph nodes), and baseline bilirubin, albumin, white blood cell count, hemoglobin, platelets, absolute neutrophil count, and derived neutrophil:lymphocyte ratio (dNLR). Missing data (<11%) were imputed, continuous variables modeled with splines, and clinically relevant pairwise interactions considered if p<0.001. Final models were internally validated via bootstrapping to obtain optimism-corrected calibration and discrimination C-indices, and externally validated using a 10% holdout sample from each trial. Results: Nomograms for OS and PFS including remaining variables were well calibrated with C-indices of 0.66 and 0.60, respectively. Evaluation of external validity revealed good concordance; 71% and 67% respectively between predicted (> vs. <50% probability) and actual (yes/no) 1-year OS and 6-month PFS, and median 1-year OS and 6-month PFS predictions fell within the actual 95% Kaplan-Meier intervals. Gender, liver and lung metastases, and dNLR were not prognostic for OS; prior chemo, colon vs. rectum, dNLR, liver and lymph node metastases, and gender did not predict for PFS. No clinically relevant pairwise interactions were identified. Conclusions: The proposed nomograms are well calibrated and internally and externally valid. These tools have the potential to aid prognostication and patient/physician communication, and balance risk in randomized trials in mCRC.
Hematology patient reported symptom screen to assess quality of life for AL amyloidosis
American Journal of Hematology | February 9, 2017 | Volume: 92 | Issue: 5 | Pages: 435-440
AbstractPatients with light chain amyloidosis (AL) often have delayed diagnosis and present with significant symptomatology; this may result in decreased quality of life (QOL). We prospectively employ a “Hematology Patient Reported Symptom Screen” (HPRSS), which is three questions about fatigue, pain, and QOL, scored 0–10. The aim of this study is to better understand QOL and determine if HPRSS parameters predict for clinical outcomes. From 2009 to 2014, 302 newly diagnosed AL patients were included. Baseline median scores [interquartile range] for fatigue, pain, and QOL were 6 [3,7], 2 [0,5], 5 [3,8], respectively. Median overall survival was 53 months, with 102 (34%) deaths in the first year. There were significant differences in baseline HPRSS between those that lived longer than one year and early death patients in the domains of fatigue (5 [IQR 3, 7] vs. 7 [IQR 5, 8], P < 0.0001) and QOL (6 [IQR 4, 8] vs. 5 [IQR 3, 7], P = 0.006). On univariate analysis fatigue, QOL, physician‐reported performance status, autologous stem cell transplant (ASCT), and Mayo stage were prognostic for survival. On multivariate analysis Mayo stage, ASCT, and baseline fatigue remained independently prognostic. When analyses were restricted to the 125 patients with HPRSS measurements at 12 months, we found that over time QOL scores improved significantly 6 [IQR 3.5, 8] → 7 [IQR 5, 8] (P = 0.01). Asking AL patients to rate their fatigue and QOL has predictive value. Baseline patient reported fatigue is an independent prognostic factor for survival. Survival at one year was associated with significant improvement in QOL.