Chemotherapy and Hematopoietic Stem Cell Transplantation for Adult T-Cell Lymphoblastic Lymphoma: Current Status and Controversies

Targeting P21-activated kinase suppresses proliferation and enhances chemosensitivity in T-cell lymphoblastic lymphoma

T-cell lymphoblastic lymphoma (T-LBL) is a highly aggressive non-Hodgkin lymphoma with a poor prognosis. P21-activated kinase (PAK) is a component of the gene expression-based classifier that can predict the prognosis of T-LBL. However, the role of PAK in T-LBL progression and survival remains poorly understood. Herein, we found that the expression of PAK1 was significantly higher in T-LBL cell lines (Jurkat, SUP-T1, and CCRF-CEM) compared to the human T-lymphoid cell line. Moreover, PAK2 mRNA level of 32 relapsed T-LBL patients was significantly higher than that of 37 cases without relapse (P = .012). T-LBL patients with high PAK1 and PAK2 expression had significantly shorter median RFS than those with low PAK1 and PAK2 expression (PAK1, P = .028; PAK2, P = .027; PAK1/2, P = .032). PAK inhibitors, PF3758309 (PF) and FRAX597, could suppress the proliferation of T-LBL cells by blocking the G1/S cell cycle phase transition. Besides, PF could enhance the chemosensitivity to doxorubicin in vitro and in vivo. Mechanistically, through western blotting and RNA sequencing, we identified that PF could inhibit the phosphorylation of PAK1/2 and downregulate the expression of cyclin D1, NF-κB and cell adhesion signaling pathways in T-LBL cell lines. These findings suggest that PAK might be associated with T-LBL recurrence and further found that PAK inhibitors could suppress proliferation and enhance chemosensitivity of T-LBL cells treated with doxorubicin. Collectively, our present study underscores the potential therapeutic effect of inhibiting PAK in T-LBL therapy.

Selection of hematopoietic stem cell transplantation for T-cell lymphoblastic lymphoma

Background

Hematopoietic stem cell transplantation (HSCT) is an important treatment for T-cell lymphoblastic lymphoma/leukemia (T-LBL). To compare the efficacy and influencing factors of autologous hematopoietic stem cell transplantation (auto-HSCT) with those of allogeneic hematopoietic stem cell transplantation (allo-HSCT) from different donors for the treatment of T-cell lymphoblastic lymphoma/leukemia (T-LBL) and provide a basis for selection of appropriate transplant methods and donors.

Methods

To provide evidence of appropriate transplant methods for these patients, we retrospectively summarized the clinical characteristics of 75 T-LBL patients receiving HSCT at Henan Cancer Hospital between March 2012 and October 2021. Overall survival (OS), progression-free survival (PFS), cumulative incidence of relapse (CIR), non-relapse mortality (NRM), and related factors affecting efficacy were analyzed.

Results

The 3-year CIR (39.9% vs 31.1%, P=0.745), 3-year PFS (60.1% vs 49.6%, P=0.434), and 3-year OS (62.8% vs 53.0%, P=0.450) were not significantly different between the auto-HSCT and allo-HSCT groups. However, the 3-year NRM was significantly higher in the allo-HSCT group (0% vs 27.2%, P=0.033). Multivariate analysis showed that the first complete remission (CR1) after HSCT was an independent influencing factor of higher OS (HR=2.498, P=0.029) and PFS (HR=2.576, P=0.016). The absence of mediastinal invasion in patients receiving HSCT was an independent influencing factor of better PFS (HR=2.977, P=0.029) and lower CIR (HR=4.040, P=0.027). With respect to the impact of donor source, the NRM in the unrelated donor (URD) and haploid donor (HPD) groups was significantly higher than that in the auto-HSCT group (P=0.021 and P=0.003, respectively), while there was no significant difference between matched sibling donors (MSD) and auto-HSCT. Compared with the MSD-HSCT group, the auto-HSCT group showed an increasing trend in 3-year CIR (39.9 ± 11.1% vs 32.6 ± 11.2%, P=0.697) and a lower trend in 3-year OS (62.8 ± 11.4% vs 64.4 ± 12.2%, P=0.929).

Conclusions

HSCT is an effective consolidation treatment option for patients with T-LBL without mediastinal invasion and with CR1 before transplantation. For CR1 patients, auto-HSCT and MSD-HSCT are effective modalities for improving survival. In non-CR1 patients without an MSD, matched unrelated donors and haploidentical donor transplantations are the best treatment options to reduce relapse and improve prognosis.

Comparison of efficacies of haploidentical transplantation and matched sibling donor transplantation in treating T-cell lymphoblastic lymphoma

OBJECTIVE

To investigate the differences in efficacy and safety between haploidentical donor hematopoietic stem cell transplantation (HID-HSCT) and matched sibling donor HSCT (MSD-HSCT) in patients with T-cell lymphoblastic lymphoma (T-LBL).

METHODS

In this retrospective analysis, we enrolled 38 patients who had undergone allogeneic HSCT at our institution between 2013 and 2021. The study participants included 28 patients who underwent HID-HSCT and 10 patients who underwent MSD-HSCT. We compared the patient characteristics and treatment effectiveness and safety between the two groups and evaluated potential prognostic variables for patients with T-LBL.

RESULTS

The median follow-up durations in the HID-HSCT and MSD-HSCT groups were 23.5 (range: 4-111) and 28.5 (range: 13-56) months, respectively. All patients showed full-donor chimerism after hematopoietic stem cell transplantation (HSCT). Except for two patients in the HID-HSCT cohort who developed poor graft function, all patients showed neutrophil and platelet engraftments after HSCT. The cumulative incidences of grades III-IV acute graft-versus-host disease were 37.5% and 28.57% in the HID-HSCT and MSD-HSCT groups, respectively (p = 0.84). The cumulative incidences of limited (34.13% vs. 28.57%, p = 0.82) and extensive (31.22% vs. 37.50%, p = 0.53) chronic graft-versus-host disease did not differ between the two cohorts. In the HID-HSCT and MSD-HSCT cohorts, the estimated 2-year overall survival rates were 70.3% (95% confidence interval [CI]: 54.9%-90.0%) and 56.2% (95% CI: 31.6%-100%), respectively (p = 1.00), and the estimated 2-year progression-free survival (PFS) rates were 48.5% (95% CI: 32.8%-71.6%) and 48.0% (95% CI: 24.6%-93.8%), respectively (p = 0.94). Furthermore, the Cox proportional-hazards model showed that a positive positron emission tomography/computed tomography (PET/CT) status before HSCT in patients who had completed chemotherapy was an independent risk factor for PFS in the multivariate analysis (p = 0.0367).

CONCLUSION

This study showed that HID-HSCT had comparable effectiveness and safety to MSD-HSCT in treating T-LBL. HID-HSCT could serve as an alternate treatment option for T-LBL in patients without an eligible identical donor. Achievement of the PET/CT-negative status before HSCT may contribute to better survival.

Improved survival of adolescents and young adults patients with T-cell acute lymphoblastic leukemia

Aim

The outcome of T-cell acute lymphoblastic leukemia (T-ALL) has improved with the use of pediatric-inspired protocols in the adolescents and young adults (AYA) population. There is limited literature regarding the outcome of T-ALL/lymphoblastic lymphoma (LBL) AYA patients treated with pediatric protocols.

Methods

A total of 35 T-ALL/LBL-AYA patients ages between 14 and 55 years were treated with AYA-15 protocol.

Results

At a median follow-up of 5 years the overall survival, disease-free survival and event-free survival are 71%, 62% and 49.6% respectively. Toxicities were within the expected range.

Conclusion

Our single-center experience real-world data in treating T-ALL/LBL-AYA patients with pediatric-inspired protocol demonstrates encouraging results of high survival rate and excellent tolerability for patients aged 18-55 years.

Clinical and prognostic role of 2-[18F]FDG PET/CT and sarcopenia in treatment-naïve patients with T-cell lymphoblastic lymphoma

T-cell lymphoblastic lymphoma (T-LBL) is a rare and highly aggressive non-Hodgkin lymphoma. This study aimed to explore the role of 2-[¹⁸F]FDG PET/CT, sarcopenia, clinical features, and treatment regimens in 49 treatment-naïve patients with T-LBL, and assess their predictive value in the prognosis. Sarcopenia was measured as skeletal muscle index (SMI) at L3 level from the CT component of PET/CT images. All 49 patients (35 males, 14 females; median age, 26 years [range, 3-66 years]) were enrolled in this study, including 36 adult patients and 13 pediatric patients. Lymph nodes, thymus, bone marrow, and pleura were the most common involved sites of T-LBL. The median SUVmax, MTV, and TLG of all lesions in these 49 patients were 12.4 (range, 4.2-40.5), 532.6 (17.4-3518.1), and 2112.2 (53.9-18,699.2), respectively. Eighteen out of 49 patients (36.7%) were diagnosed with sarcopenia. Sarcopenia patients had lower BMI and SUVmax of muscle at L3 level than non-sarcopenia patients (P < 0.05). Univariate Cox regression analysis indicated that higher MTV and TLG and intrathecal therapy (IT) were associated with longer progression-free survival (PFS) and overall survival (OS), while multivariate Cox regression analysis showed that TLG and IT were independent predictors for PFS, and only IT was an independent predictor for OS. In conclusion, low BMI and SUVmax of muscle at L3 level correlated with sarcopenia in T-LBL patients. Higher initial MTV and TLG and receiving IT were associated with better prognosis in T-LBL patients. TLG and IT, but not sarcopenia, were independent prognostic factors.

Post-transplantation Fluorine-18 Fluorodeoxyglucose Positron Emission Tomography in Patients with Lymphoblastic Lymphoma is an Independent Prognostic Factor with an Impact on Progression-Free Survival but not Overall Survival

Purpose: In the present study, we mainly aimed to evaluate the prognostic value of 2-deoxy-2-[¹⁸F]fluoro-D-glucose ([¹⁸F]F-FDG) positron emission tomography (PET)/computed tomography (CT) after allogeneic stem cell transplantation (allo-SCT) in lymphoblastic lymphoma (LBL) patients using Deauville Scores (DS). Materials and Methods: A total of 63 LBL patients who benefited from ¹⁸F-FDG PET-CT after allo-SCT in our institution between April 2010 and August 2020 were enrolled in this retrospective study. These above-mentioned patients were divided into two groups based on the Deauville criteria. Diagnostic efficiency of ¹⁸F-FDG PET/CT and integrated CT in detecting lymphoma were calculated. Consistencies were evaluated by comparing 18F-FDG PET/CT and integrated CT results through kappa coefficient. Kaplan-Meier method was used in survival analysis, and the log-rank method was adopted in comparisons. Prognostic factor analysis was performed by the Cox regression model. Results: The sensitivity, specificity, positive predictive value, negative predictive value, accuracy of post-SCT ¹⁸F-FDG PET-CT were 100%(12/12), 92.2%(47/51), 75.0%(12/16), 100%(47/47) and 93.7%(59/63). The consistency of 18F-FDG PET-CT and integrated CT was moderate(Kappa = .702，P < .001). Positive post-SCT 18F-FDG PET-CT was associated with lower progression-free survival (PFS) but not overall survival (OS) (p = .000 and p = .056, respectively). The 3-year PFS of the PET-positive group and PET-negative group was 18.8% and 70.2%, respectively. Multivariate analysis showed that post-SCT PET-CT findings was an independent prognostic factor for PFS (p = .000; HR, 3.957; 95%CI, 1.839-8.514). Other factors independently affecting PFS were sex (p = .018; HR, 2.588; 95% CI, 1.181 − 5.670) and lactate dehydrogenase (LDH) (p = .005; HR, 3.246; 95% CI, 1.419 − 7.426). However, none of the above-mentioned factors were associated with OS. Conclusions: Collectively, we found that 18F-FDG PET-CT after allo-SCT was a strong indicator for PFS, but not OS, which might provide important evidence for the selection of subsequent treatment regimen for LBL patients. Trial registration number: ChiCTR2100046709.

[Analysis of treatment response and prognostic factors of T-LBL patients treated with pediatric-like ALL therapy following HSCT]

目的

探讨经急性淋巴细胞白血病（ALL）儿童方案治疗达到完全缓解（CR）和部分缓解（PR）的T淋巴母细胞淋巴瘤（T-LBL）患者应用造血干细胞移植巩固治疗的疗效及预后因素。

方法

收集2013年1月至2017年1月于唐都医院血液病中心接受治疗的T-LBL患者的临床资料，将达到CR或PR的患者纳入研究，进行回顾性分析。

结果

①48例患者接受了ALL儿童方案治疗，经2个疗程的诱导化疗后39例达CR，9例达PR。其中接受自体造血干细胞移植（auto-HSCT）者14例，接受异基因造血干细胞移植（allo-HSCT）者7例，21例患者移植后造血功能均顺利重建。②中位随访时间31（9～16）个月。3年总生存（OS）率为61.0%（95% CI 53.7%～68.3%），3年无进展生存（PFS）率为54.8%（95% CI 47.1%～62.2%）。③移植组和未移植组3年OS率分别为84.7%和42.8%（P＝0.006），两组3年PFS率分别为75.4%和38.9%（P＝0.004）。④auto-HSCT组与allo-HSCT组患者的OS率、PFS率差异均无统计学意义（P值分别为0.320、0.597）。⑤骨髓侵犯、未接受造血干细胞移植是影响患者长期预后的独立危险因素［ HR＝5.804（95% CI 1.140～29.549），P＝0.034；HR＝5.871（95% CI 1.711～20.140），P＝0.005］。

结论

ALL儿童方案化疗序贯造血干细胞移植治疗T-LBL疗效确切，安全性好。auto-HSCT与allo-HSCT患者的OS率及PFS率差异均无统计学意义。骨髓侵犯、未接受造血干细胞移植是影响T-LBL患者长期预后的独立危险因素。

Prognostic and predictive value of a microRNA signature in adults with T-cell lymphoblastic lymphoma

New prognostic factors are needed to establish indications for haematopoietic stem cell transplantation (HSCT) in first complete remission (CR1) for T-cell lymphoblastic lymphoma (T-LBL) patients. We used microarray to compare T-LBL tissue samples (n = 75) and fetal thymus tissues (n = 20), and identified 35 differentially expressed miRNAs. Using 107 subjects as the training group, we developed a five-miRNA-based classifier to predict patient survival with LASSO Cox regression: lower risk was associated with better prognosis (disease-free survival (DFS): hazard ratio (HR) 4.548, 95% CI 2.433-8.499, p < 0.001; overall survival (OS): HR 5.030, 95% CI 2.407-10.513, p < 0.001). This classifier displayed good performance in the internal testing set (n = 106) and the independent external set (n = 304). High risk was associated with more favorable response to HSCT (DFS: HR 1.675, 95% CI 1.127-2.488, p = 0.011; OS: HR 1.602, 95% CI 1.055-2.433, p = 0.027). When combined with ECOG-PS and/or NOTCH1/FBXW7 status, this classifier had even better prognostic performance in patients receiving HSCT (DFS: HR 2.088, 95% CI 1.290-3.379, p = 0.003; OS: HR 1.996, 95% CI 1.203-3.311, p = 0.007). The five-miRNA classifier may be a useful prognostic biomarker for T-LBL adults, and could identify subjects who could benefit from HSCT.

T-Cell Non-Hodgkin Lymphomas: Spectrum of Disease and the Role of Imaging in the Management of Common Subtypes

T-cell non-Hodgkin lymphomas (NHLs) are biologically diverse, uncommon malignancies characterized by a spectrum of imaging findings according to subtype. The purpose of this review is to describe the common subtypes of T-cell NHL, highlight important differences between cutaneous, various peripheral and precursor subtypes, and summarize imaging features and the role of imaging in the management of this diverse set of diseases.

The staging and treatment of multicentric high-grade lymphoma in dogs: a review of recent developments and future prospects

In recent years, considerable progress has been made in understanding the biology of canine lymphoma with resultant enhanced classification schemes and the possibility of individualised, tailored therapies. However, although complete remission may be achieved using multi-agent chemotherapy, the mortality rate from this neoplasm remains high. This review focuses on the staging of high-grade multicentric lymphoma in the dog, on conventional and novel treatment strategies (including chemotherapy, bone marrow transplantation, radiation therapy and molecular-targeted agents), and on the management of relapsed or refractory cases.

Human immunodeficiency virus-associated precursor T-lymphoblastic leukemia/lymphoblastic lymphoma: report of a case and review of the literature

We describe a case of human immunodeficiency virus-associated T-lymphoblastic leukemia/lymphoblastic lymphoma in a 43-year-old Italian man with a history of human immunodeficiency virus infection lasting 9 years. Immunoperoxidase stains showed that neoplastic cells were positive for CD3, TdT, CD45, CD10, CD1a, CD2, CD7, CD5, and CD43 (focal). The proliferation rate was approximately 70%, assessed by Ki-67/MIB-1 staining. Flow cytometry of the marrow aspirate revealed an intermediate/cortical T-lymphoblastic phenotype: negative for surface CD3 and positive for cytoplasmic CD3, CD1a, TdT, CD2, CD7, CD5, and CD8, with partial coexpression of dimCD4. Analysis of T-cell receptor gamma polymerase chain reaction products showed clonality. T-lymphoblastic leukemia/lymphoblastic lymphoma is a very rare occurrence in the clinical setting of human immunodeficiency virus infection. It is not listed in the World Health Organization classification of lymphomas associated with human immunodeficiency virus infection. Only 4 cases of human immunodeficiency virus-associated T-lymphoblastic leukemia/lymphoblastic lymphoma are reported in the current medical literature.

Treatment with bortezomib in a patient with heavily pretreated refractory T-cell lymphoblastic lymphoma

T-cell lymphoblastic lymphomas are highly aggressive non-Hodgkin's lymphoma (NHL) and account for approximately 3% of all adult NHL histologies, with poor prognosis. We describe a 38-year-old patient with T-cell lymphoblastic lymphoma, who responds to bortezomib and doxorubincin combination, following a failure of conventional chemotherapy. Two months after treatment, the patient showed near complete remission of the lymphadenopathy. These data suggest a possible synergistic effect with bortezomib in combination with doxorubincin and dexamethasone. To our knowledge, this is the first case of T-cell lymphoblastic lymphoma treated with bortezomib.