February 2019
Volume 5, Issue 3
This issue features a look at the unique challenges of developing treatments for orphan diseases, more coverage of the 2018 ASH annual meeting, and more.
Table of Contents
February 2019 Issue
An ASH Annual Meeting Post-Vivum
“So, what did you learn from ASH?” asked my advisor a couple of weeks after I returned from my first American Society of Hematology...
Cinder, a New Dating App From ASH!*
In preparation for Valentine’s Day, ASH Clinical News has been trolling for ways to promote that most elusive of emotions – love – while...
February 2019 Issue
An Advocacy Win for Sickle Cell Disease
An Advocacy Win for Sickle Cell Disease
As part of a multifaceted initiative to address the burden of sickle cell disease (SCD) in the U.S....
Remembering Evan Sadler and Charles Dobbs, and more
Remembering Evan Sadler (1951 – 2018)
Evan Sadler III, MD, PhD, the Lang Professor of Medicine and Chief of Hematology at Washington University in St....
February 2019 Issue
Finding Homes for Orphans
The unique challenges of researching, managing, and developing orphan drugs for rare diseases
Rare diseases are having a moment, and not just in the field...
Pulling Back the Curtain: Peter Marks, MD, PhD
In this edition, Peter Marks, MD, PhD, talks about career-hopping, serving the public, and landing his dream job. Dr. Marks is director of the...
February 2019 Issue
Best options for an older patient with Ph+ B-cell ALL
This month, Wendy Stock, MD, discusses best options for an older patient with Philadelphia chromosome (Ph)–positive B-cell acute lymphocytic leukemia (ALL).
And don't forget to...
February 2019 Issue
FDA Approves Calaspargase Pegol-mknl for Acute Lymphocytic Leukemia
The FDA approved calaspargase pegol-mknl, an asparagine-specific enzyme, for the treatment of pediatric and young adult patients (ages 1 month to 21 years) with...
Cigna and Express Scripts Seal $54 Billion Merger
Health insurer Cigna completed its $54 billion acquisition of Express Scripts, which manages the prescription plans of more than 80 million Americans. The announcement...
FDA Expands Romiplostim Indication to Pediatric ITP
The U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) approved romiplostim for the treatment of immune thrombocytopenia (ITP) in children younger than age 1 whose disease...
An MRD-Guided Azacitidine Treatment Strategy Delays Hematologic Relapse in MDS and AML
According to results from the phase II RELAZA2 trial, minimal residual disease (MRD)–guided treatment with the hypomethylating agent azacitidine delayed hematologic relapse in patients...
Apixaban AVERTs Cancer-Associated Venous Thromboembolism
In the randomized, placebo-controlled AVERT trial, investigators assessed the safety and efficacy of apixaban thromboprophylaxis in patients with cancer considered to be at intermediate-...
A Pediatric Regimen Is Effective for Adolescents and Young Adults With ALL
Adolescents and young adults (AYAs) with newly diagnosed acute lymphocytic leukemia (ALL) who received a pediatric-inspired regimen had better survival outcomes than historical controls,...
Study Identifies Genetic Markers That Predict Radiation-Induced Breast Cancer After Hodgkin Lymphoma
The risk of developing breast cancer is high in women with Hodgkin lymphoma (HL) who have undergone chest radiotherapy (RT), but the role of...
NCI Trims Operating Expenses for 2019
Despite receiving a larger budget for fiscal year 2019 – a $179-million increase over the previous year – the National Cancer Institute (NCI) plans...
Azacitidine Maintenance Improves Disease-Free Survival in Older Patients with Newly Diagnosed AML
Older patients with acute myeloid leukemia (AML) in complete remission (CR) who received maintenance therapy with subcutaneous azacitidine had longer disease-free survival (DFS), compared...
February 2019 Issue
Transplant or No Transplant for Older, Fit Patients With MDS?
Hematopoietic cell transplantation (HCT) with reduced-intensity conditioning improved overall survival (OS) in older patients with advanced myelodysplastic syndromes (MDS), compared with OS in patients...
Good News on the HORIZON: Melflufen Induces Response in Heavily Refractory Myeloma
One-third of patients with relapsed/refractory multiple myeloma (MM) that was refractory to pomalidomide and/or daratumumab responded to treatment with melflufen, according to interim data...
Mixed Results for Immunotherapy Approaches in Myelodysplastic Syndromes
Findings from trials evaluating new treatment strategies for patients with myelodysplastic syndromes (MDS) produced mixed results: Combining an immune checkpoint inhibitor with azacitidine was...
Predicting Response to Alvocidib in Patients With Relapsed/Refractory AML
The CDK9 inhibitor alvocidib induced a high rate of responses in patients with relapsed or refractory acute myeloid leukemia (AML) who had MCL1-dependent disease,...
Age, Blood Type, and Rituximab Use Associated With Relapse Risk in TTP
For patients with thrombotic thrombocytopenic purpura (TTP), treatment with rituximab prevented relapse in the first year after administration, but the protective effect waned over...
Evaluating Imetelstat for Patients With Relapsed/Refractory Myelofibrosis
In a phase II trial presented at the 2018 ASH Annual Meeting conducted in patients with higher-risk myelofibrosis (MF) who had relapsed following or...
Predicting Thrombosis and Mortality in Patients With Sickle Cell Disease
Two studies presented at the 2018 ASH Annual Meeting characterized the risk for complications, and offered models for predicting these risks, in patients with...
