Clinical Effectiveness of Conjugate Pneumococcal Vaccination in Hematopoietic Stem Cell Transplantation Recipients

Vaccination of Adults With Cancer: ASCO Guideline

PURPOSE

To guide the vaccination of adults with solid tumors or hematologic malignancies.

METHODS

A systematic literature review identified systematic reviews, randomized controlled trials (RCTs), and nonrandomized studies on the efficacy and safety of vaccines used by adults with cancer or their household contacts. This review builds on a 2013 guideline by the Infectious Disease Society of America. PubMed and the Cochrane Library were searched from January 1, 2013, to February 16, 2023. ASCO convened an Expert Panel to review the evidence and formulate recommendations.

RESULTS

A total of 102 publications were included in the systematic review: 24 systematic reviews, 14 RCTs, and 64 nonrandomized studies. The largest body of evidence addressed COVID-19 vaccines.

RECOMMENDATIONS

The goal of vaccination is to limit the severity of infection and prevent infection where feasible. Optimizing vaccination status should be considered a key element in the care of patients with cancer. This approach includes the documentation of vaccination status at the time of the first patient visit; timely provision of recommended vaccines; and appropriate revaccination after hematopoietic stem-cell transplantation, chimeric antigen receptor T-cell therapy, or B-cell-depleting therapy. Active interaction and coordination among healthcare providers, including primary care practitioners, pharmacists, and nursing team members, are needed. Vaccination of household contacts will enhance protection for patients with cancer. Some vaccination and revaccination plans for patients with cancer may be affected by the underlying immune status and the anticancer therapy received. As a result, vaccine strategies may differ from the vaccine recommendations for the general healthy adult population vaccine.Additional information is available at www.asco.org/supportive-care-guidelines.

Vaccine schedule recommendations and updates for patients with hematologic malignancy post-hematopoietic cell transplant or CAR T-cell therapy

Revaccination after receipt of a hematopoietic cell transplant (HCT) or cellular therapies is a pillar of patient supportive care, with the potential to reduce morbidity and mortality linked to vaccine-preventable infections. This review synthesizes national, international, and expert consensus vaccination schedules post-HCT and presents evidence regarding the efficacy of newer vaccine formulations for pneumococcus, recombinant zoster vaccine, and coronavirus disease 2019 in patients with hematological malignancy. Revaccination post-cellular therapies are less well defined. This review highlights important considerations around poor vaccine response, seroprevalence preservation after cellular therapies, and the optimal timing of revaccination. Future research should assess the immunogenicity and real-world effectiveness of new vaccine formulations and/or vaccine schedules in patients post-HCT and cellular therapy, including analysis of vaccine response that relates to the target of cellular therapies.

A Phase 3, Randomized, Double-Blind, Comparator-Controlled Study to Evaluate Safety, Tolerability, and Immunogenicity of V114, a 15-Valent Pneumococcal Conjugate Vaccine, in Allogeneic Hematopoietic Cell Transplant Recipients (PNEU-STEM)

BACKGROUND

Individuals who receive allogeneic hematopoietic cell transplant (allo-HCT) are immunocompromised and at high risk of pneumococcal infections, especially in the months following transplant. This study evaluated the safety and immunogenicity of V114 (VAXNEUVANCE; Merck, Sharp & Dohme LLC, a subsidiary of Merck & Co., Inc., Rahway, NJ, USA), a 15-valent pneumococcal conjugate vaccine (PCV), when given to allo-HCT recipients.

METHODS

Participants received 3 doses of V114 or PCV13 (Prevnar 13; Wyeth LLC) in 1-month intervals starting 3-6 months after allo-HCT. Twelve months after HCT, participants received either PNEUMOVAX 23 or a fourth dose of PCV (if they experienced chronic graft vs host disease). Safety was evaluated as the proportion of participants with adverse events (AEs). Immunogenicity was evaluated by measuring serotype-specific immunoglobulin G (IgG) geometric mean concentrations (GMCs) and opsonophagocytic activity (OPA) geometric mean titers (GMTs) for all V114 serotypes in each vaccination group.

RESULTS

A total of 274 participants were enrolled and vaccinated in the study. The proportions of participants with AEs and serious AEs were generally comparable between intervention groups, and the majority of AEs in both groups were of short duration and mild-to-moderate intensity. For both IgG GMCs and OPA GMTs, V114 was generally comparable to PCV13 for the 13 shared serotypes, and higher for serotypes 22F and 33F at day 90.

CONCLUSIONS

V114 was well tolerated in allo-HCT recipients, with a generally comparable safety profile to PCV13. V114 induced comparable immune responses to PCV13 for the 13 shared serotypes, and was higher for V114 serotypes 22F and 33F. Study results support the use of V114 in allo-HCT recipients. Clinical Trials Registration. clinicaltrials.gov (NCT03565900) and European Union at EudraCT 2018-000066-11.

Immunogenicity of a 5-dose pneumococcal vaccination schedule following allogeneic hematopoietic stem cell transplantation

The optimal schedule of pneumococcal vaccination after allogeneic hematopoietic stem cell transplantation (allo‐HSCT) remains controversial. The objective of this study was to investigate the immunogenicity of a 5‐dose pneumococcal vaccination schedule in adult allo‐HSCT recipients with and without immunosuppressive therapy. In this prospective cohort study, allo‐HSCT recipients received four doses of the 13‐valent pneumococcal conjugate vaccine (PCV13) and one dose of the 23‐valent pneumococcal polysaccharide vaccine (PPSV23) starting 4–6 months after allo‐HSCT. PCV13 was administered at T0, T1, T2, and T8 (T = months from enrollment) and PPSV23 at T10. Serum was collected at T0, T4, T8, T10, and T12, and IgG levels were measured for all 24 vaccine serotypes by immunoassay. The primary outcome was overall seroprotection at T12 defined as an IgG concentration ≥1.3 μg/ml for 17/24 vaccine serotypes in allo‐HCST recipients with and without immunosuppressive therapy at baseline. Secondary outcomes were serotype‐specific seroprotection and dynamics of IgG levels. We included 89 allo‐HSCT recipients in the final analysis. Overall seroprotection was 47% (15/32) for patients without immunosuppressive therapy at baseline versus 24% (11/46) for patients with immunosuppressive therapy (p = .03). Seroprotection was higher for PCV13 serotypes (78% and 54% respectively; p = .03) and lower for PPSV23‐unique serotypes (28% and 13% respectively; p = .1). IgG concentrations increased significantly over time for all 24 serotypes. Concluding, although immunogenicity of PCV13 serotypes was reasonable, the poor response to PPSV23 serotypes resulted in an insufficient overall response to pneumococcal vaccination for allo‐HSCT recipients. Research into vaccination strategies with higher‐valent T‐cell‐dependent pneumococcal vaccines is needed.

Incidence and Predictors of Community-Acquired Pneumonia in Patients With Hematological Cancers Between 2016 and 2019

Background

Patients with hematological cancers (HC) are at high risk of infections, in particular community-acquired pneumonia (CAP). Recent data on incidence and predictors of CAP among patients with HC are scarce.

Methods

We performed a cohort study (2016–2019) in 2 hospitals in the Netherlands among adults with HC to calculate incidence rates (IRs) of CAP. In addition, we performed a nested case-control study to identify predictors of CAP.

Results

We identified 275 CAP cases during 6264 patient-years of follow-up. The IR of CAP was 4390/100 000 patient-years of follow-up. Compared with the general population, IR ratios ranged from 5.4 to 55.3 for the different HCs. The case fatality and intensive care unit (ICU) admission rates were 5.5% and 9.8%, respectively. Predictors for CAP in patients with HC were male sex, anemia, lymphocytopenia, chronic kidney disease, cardiovascular disease, autologous and allogeneic stem cell transplantation, treatment with immunosuppressive medication for graft-vs-host disease, treatment with rituximab in the past year, and treatment with immunomodulators (lenalidomide, thalidomide, pomalidomide and/or methotrexate) in the past month. Independent predictors of a severe disease course (death or ICU admission) included neutropenia (odds ratio, 4.14 [95% confidence interval, 1.63–10.2]), pneumococcal pneumonia (10.24 [3.48–30.1]), chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (6.90 [2.07–23.0]), and the use of antibacterial prophylaxis (2.53 [1.05–6.08]).

Conclusions

The burden of CAP in patients with HC is high, with significant morbidity and mortality rates. Therefore, vaccination against respiratory pathogens early in the disease course is recommended, in particular before starting certain immunosuppressive therapies.

Systematic literature review of the disease burden and vaccination of pneumococcal disease among adults in select Asia-Pacific areas

INTRODUCTION

Pneumococcal diseases are common and cause significant morbidity and mortality, with higher rates especially in developing areas including many in the Asia-Pacific (AP) region. However, current strategies to prevent pneumococcal disease in adults are quite complicated and not well implemented among many AP areas, and vaccination coverage rates among adults are generally low or perceived as low in the region. Thus, this literature review's purpose was to summarize the disease burden and vaccination against pneumococcal diseases among adults in select AP areas (Australia, Hong Kong, India, Indonesia, South Korea, Malaysia, New Zealand, the Philippines, Singapore, Taiwan, Thailand, and Vietnam).

AREAS COVERED

This systematic review included published articles from January 2010 to August 2020 using MEDLINE/Embase. Grey literature websites were searched for national immunization programs and medical society vaccination recommendations from areas of interest. A total of 69 publications were identified.

EXPERT OPINION

In the AP region, pneumococcal disease burden and serotype prevalence are variable among adult populations, particularly among older adults. Data was provided primarily from countries with established national immunization programs (NIPs). Further research on the disease burden and emphasis on the benefits of vaccination in AP areas lacking pneumococcal vaccination programs is warranted.

Infectious complications and vaccines

Infections are a major cause of morbidity and can result in mortality in long-term survivors after allogeneic hematopoietic cell transplantation. Chronic graft-versus-host disease and delayed immune reconstitution are recognized risk factors. Different strategies must be utilized depending on the individual patient's situation but include prolonged antimicrobial prophylaxis and vaccination. Some important infections due to pathogens preventable by vaccination are pneumococci, influenza, varicella-zoster virus, and SARS-CoV-2. Despite the fact that such recommendations have been in place for decades, implementation of these recommendations has been reported to be poor.

Changes in vaccination strategies contribute to the development of invasive pneumococcal disease in allogeneic hematopoietic stem cell transplantation recipients: a retrospective study for promoting vaccination

Allogeneic hematopoietic stem cell transplantation (allo-HSCT) recipients are at high risk of developing invasive pneumococcal disease (IPD) with substantial morbidity and mortality. Pneumococcal polysaccharide vaccine (PPSV23) and pneumococcal conjugate vaccine (PCV13) are the primary prevention strategy. The difference between the Japanese and international guidelines is limited except when to start PCV13. However, Japanese data regarding the incidence of IPD after allo-HSCT that include vaccination status are limited. Therefore, we aimed to study the clinical characteristics of patients with IPD following allo-HSCT, focusing on unvaccinated patients. We retrospectively reviewed allo-HSCT recipients between April 2005 and December 2018 at Komagome Hospital. Among 1,091 recipients, 11 (1008/100,000 recipients) developed 13 episodes of IPD. The median period from the first allo-HSCT to the first IPD episode was 686 days (10-3040 days). Ten patients developed IPD before vaccination, and seven of these unvaccinated patients with late-onset IPD were ineligible for vaccination based on domestic guidelines. Although appropriate treatments resulted in a good short-term prognosis, most episodes of IPD developed in unvaccinated allo-HSCT recipients. Our data support the promotion of better adherence to the current guidelines and the importance of pneumococcal vaccination even years after allo-HSCT to protect against late-onset IPD.

Invasive pneumococcal disease among adults with hematological and solid organ malignancies: A population-based cohort study

OBJECTIVES

To determine the risk of invasive pneumococcal disease (IPD) in adult cancer patients stratified by type of underlying malignancy, age, and capsular serotype and to assess herd effects of childhood pneumococcal vaccination.

METHODS

All adult IPD cases reported to the Dutch pneumococcal surveillance system between 2004 and 2016 were included in this study. IPD incidence rates (IR) stratified by subtype of malignancy were calculated per 100 000 patient-years of follow-up. Incidence rate ratios (IRR) were calculated to compare IRs between groups.

RESULTS

A total of 7167 IPD cases were included, of which 1453 were in patients with malignancies. For patients with hematological malignancies (HM) and solid organ malignancies (SOM), IRs were 482/100 000 and 79/100 000, respectively, compared with 15/100 000 in controls. The highest incidence was observed among patients with multiple myeloma, non-Hodgkin lymphoma, chronic lymphocytic leukemia, pancreatic cancer, and lung cancer (3299/100 000, 2717/100 000, 538/100 000, 559/100 000, and 393/100 000, respectively), and in patients ≥50 years old. Among HM patients, the incidence of IPD declined significantly after the implementation of infant pneumococcal vaccination (IRR 0.65, 95% confidence interval 0.51-0.84); among SOM patients, the decline was not statistically significant (IRR 0.88, 95% confidence interval 0.72-1.07).

CONCLUSIONS

The IPD disease burden in cancer patients remains high. Large differences in IPD incidence between the different types of cancer demand tailored guidance regarding pneumococcal vaccination.

Casting a wider protective net: Anti-infective vaccine strategies for patients with hematologic malignancy and blood and marrow transplantation

Patients who have hematologic malignancies are at high risk for infections but vaccinations may be effective prophylaxis. The increased infection risk derives from immune defects secondary to malignancy, the classic example being CLL, and chemotherapies and immunotherapy used to treat the malignancies. Therapy of hematologic malignancies is being revolutionized by introduction of novel targeted agents and immunomodulatory medications, improving the survival of patients. At the same time those agents uniquely change the infection risk and response to immunizations. This review will summarize current vaccine recommendations for patients with hematologic malignancies including patients who undergo hematopoietic cell transplant.