January 2021
Volume 7, Issue 1
This issue features a look at the trend of technology transfer in hematology, reflections on staying relevant in retirement, and more.
Table of Contents
January 2021 Issue
Musical and Medical Reflections
While updating my CV for an annual performance review, I noticed a considerable number of musical references popping up in the bibliography. Yes, Bruce...
A Relevant Retirement
The Department of Medicine at Weill Cornell in New York recently held a 90th birthday celebration for Richard T. Silver, MD, which included Medical...
January 2021 Issue
Remembering Mark Smith, Cancer Researchers Receive 2020 AAAS Fellow Distinction, and more
Remembering Mark Smith (1962 - 2020)
Mark P. Smith, MBChB, died suddenly on September 24, 2020, at the age of 58.Since 1995, Dr. Smith has...
Azacitidine and Romidepsin Combination Shows High Activity in Peripheral T-Cell Lymphoma
A combination regimen consisting of oral azacitidine and romidepsin was highly active in patients with peripheral T-cell lymphoma (PTCL), particularly in previously untreated patients...
Does Blood Group Affect Risk of Bleeding Events or Bleeding Severity?
According to research published in Blood Advances, people who experience bleeding of unknown causes are 48% more likely to have blood group O, compared...
Imetelstat Improves Rate of Durable Transfusion Independence in Patients With Lower-Risk MDS
Treatment with imetelstat, a competitive inhibitor of telomerase enzymatic activity, was associated with a clinically meaningful rate of transfusion independence in heavily transfused patients...
Precision Medicine Approach Deemed Safe, Feasible for Older Patients With Untreated AML
A precision medicine treatment approach that incorporates genomic data into treatment decisions appears to be feasible in older patients with untreated acute myeloid leukemia...
ASH Names New Editor-in-Chief of ASH Clinical News, Announces Donation of NGS Equipment to...
ASH Names New Editor-in-Chief of ASH Clinical News
ASH Clinical News is excited to announce the selection of its next editor-in-chief, Aaron T. Gerds, MD, who...
Ivosidenib and Azacitidine Combination Demonstrates Durable Activity in Newly Diagnosed AML
Ivosidenib, an inhibitor of the mutant isocitrate dehydrogenase 1 (IDH1) enzyme, was well tolerated and associated with deep and durable responses in combination with...
Machine Learning Detects Prognostic Associations Between Morphologic and Genetic Changes in MDS
A new artificial intelligence–based technique was able to establish correlations between genetic and morphologic biomarkers, revealing diagnostically and prognostically important relationships, according to results...
Is Caplacizumab a Cost-Effective Strategy for Acquired TTP?
In February 2019, the FDA approved the anti–von Willebrand factor immunoglobulin fragment caplacizumab as the only agent specifically indicated for the treatment of adults...
At-Home Coronavirus Test Receives FDA Approval
The FDA has granted emergency use authorization to the first complete at-home coronavirus test developed by Lucira Health in California. Requiring a prescription from...
FDA Approves Monoclonal Antibody Therapies for COVID-19
The FDA has authorized intravenous (IV) casirivimab and imdevimab to be administered together for the treatment of patients aged 12 and older with mild...
Pfizer’s COVID-19 Vaccine Receives Emergency Authorization
On December 11, 2020, the FDA issued the first emergency use authorization (EUA) for a vaccine for the prevention of COVID-19 in individuals 16...
Study Identifies Key Mutations That Promote Stem Cell Growth and Increase Leukemia Risk
In a report published in Nature, researchers linked three genetic loci to the increased proliferation of hematopoietic stem cells (HSCs), which may subsequently increase...
FDA Lifts Clinical Hold on Study Evaluating UCARTCS1 for Myeloma
The FDA has lifted its clinical hold on the phase I MELANI-01 trial evaluating the chimeric antigen receptor (CAR) T-cell therapy UCARTCS1 for the...
January 2021 Issue
From Bench to Bedside
More universities are focusing efforts on technology transfer and industry partnerships to bring new therapies to market
Technology transfer, or the commercialization of scientific discoveries,...
Pulling Back the Curtain: Maria “Ken” Figueroa, MD
Here, Maria “Ken” Figueroa, MD, talks about her childhood in Argentina, medical inspiration from the TV show M*A*S*H, and her passion for research.
Before we...
January 2021 Issue
Reader Responses: Which direct oral anticoagulant would you choose for a submassive pulmonary embolism?
Here’s how readers responded to a You Make the Call question about choice of direct oral anticoagulant (DOAC) for a saddle pulmonary embolism.
Disclaimer: ASH...
You Make the Call: Which direct oral anticoagulant would you choose for a saddle...
This month, Allyson Pishko, MD, MSCE, discusses choice of direct oral anticoagulant (DOAC) for a saddle pulmonary embolism.
And don't forget to check out next...
January 2021 Issue
New HOPE for Hemophilia B: One-Time Gene Therapy Abolishes Bleeding in Most Patients
A single dose of the gene therapy drug etranacogene dezaparvovec increased factor IX (FIX) activity levels, and eliminated the need for prophylactic FIX, in...
Adding Mycophenolate to Corticosteroids Improves Response as Frontline Option in Immune Thrombocytopenia
In results from the randomized, controlled FLIGHT trial, patients with immune thrombocytopenia (ITP) who received mycophenolate mofetil (MMF) plus corticosteroids as first-line therapy were...
Asciminib Beats Bosutinib in Treatment-Resistant Chronic Myeloid Leukemia
Asciminib, a first-in-class allosteric inhibitor that Specifically Targets ABL Myristoyl Pocket (STAMP), was more effective at achieving major molecular response (MMR) than bosutinib in...
