Impact of cytomegalovirus infection prior to hematopoietic stem cell transplantation in children with inborn errors of immunity

Letermovir for CMV Prophylaxis in Very High-Risk Pediatric Hematopoietic Stem Cell Transplantation Recipients for Inborn Errors of Immunity

The burden of CMV infection and disease is important in pediatric hematopoietic stem cell transplantation (HSCT), notably in the subgroup of patients with inborn errors of immunity (IEIs). Letermovir (LMV) is now a standard of care for CMV prophylaxis in adult sero-positive (R+) recipients, but is not yet labeled for children. Published pediatric studies are still scarce. We report a monocentric real-life use of LMV in 36 HSCT pediatric recipients with IEIs considered at high-risk of CMV infection including 14 patients between 2 and 12 months of age. A homogenous dosage proportional to the body surface area was used. Pharmacokinetic (PK) was performed in 8 patients with a median of 6 years of age (range 0,6;15). The cumulative incidence of clinically significant CMV infections (CS-CMVi) and the overall survival of patients under LMV were compared to a very similar historical cohort under (val)aciclovir prophylaxis. LMV tolerance was good. As compared to the historical cohort, the incidence of CS-CMVi was significantly lower in LMV group (5 out of 36 transplants (13.9%) versus 28 of the 62 HSCT (45.2%)) (p = 0.002). Plasma LMV exposures did not significantly differ with those reported in adult patients. In this high-risk pediatric HSCT cohort transplanted for IEIs, CMV prophylaxis with LMV at a homogenous dosage was well tolerated and effective in preventing CS-CMVi compared with a historical cohort.