Outcome of a Real-Life Population of Patients With Acute Promyelocytic Leukemia Treated According to the PETHEMA Guidelines: The Polish Adult Leukemia Group (PALG) Experience

Early predictor for differentiation syndrome in newly diagnosed acute promyelocytic leukaemia patients treated with single-agent arsenic trioxide

Differentiation syndrome (DS) is the second leading cause of death in acute promyelocytic leukaemia (APL) patients. Few studies have tested predictors of DS events. This study aimed to identify optimized predictors of DS events related to APL. The data of 298 consecutive patients who were newly diagnosed with APL between December 2012 and June 2023 were retrospectively investigated. A systematic review of computer-based patient medical records was conducted to obtain clinical data, including baseline characteristics, routine blood examination findings, biochemical indices and clinical manifestations of DS. Among the 298 patients, 158 were classified into the no-DS group, while 140 had DS. Compared with those of patients without DS, the peripheral blast count, age, and WBC count at each time point were significantly different in patients with DS (P < 0.05 for all time points). Generalized linear mixed models (GLMMs) revealed that WBC Double (Coeff. 0.442, P = 0.000) and WBCPeak (Coeff. 0.879, P = 0.000) were independent risk factors for DS. The frequencies of clinical manifestations of unexplained fever (P = 0.003), dyspnoea (P = 0.002), weight gain of more than 5 kg (P = 0.006), pleural effusion (P = 0.001), pulmonary infiltrates (P < 0.001), pericardial effusion (P = 0.002) and renal failure (P = 0.006) were considerably lower in moderate DS patients than in severe DS patients. The WBCDouble occurs earlier than the WBCpeak occurrence, so WBC Double might be a new indicator of DS.

The Coagulopathy of Acute Promyelocytic Leukemia: An Updated Review of Pathophysiology, Risk Stratification, and Clinical Management

Acute promyelocytic leukemia (APL) has a well-established mechanism and a long-term prognosis that exceeds that of any other acute leukemia. These improving outcomes are due, in part, to all-trans retinoic acid (ATRA) and arsenic trioxide (ATO), two targeted and highly active agents in this disease. However, there remains a considerable morbidity and mortality risk in APL secondary to clinically significant hemorrhagic and/or thrombotic events. Prevention and treatment of these coagulopathic complications remain significant impediments to further progress in optimizing outcomes for patients with APL. Moreover, the relative rarity of APL hinders adequately powered randomized controlled trials for evaluating APL coagulopathy management strategies. This review draws from peer-reviewed works falling between initial descriptions of APL in 1957 and work published prior to January 2023 and provides an updated overview of the pathophysiology of hemorrhagic and thrombotic complications in APL, outlines risk stratification parameters, and compiles current clinical best practices. An improved understanding of the pathophysiologic mechanisms driving hemorrhage and thrombosis along with the completion of well-designed trials of management strategies will assist clinicians in developing interventions that mitigate these devastating complications in an otherwise largely curable disease.

Effects of peripheral blood leukocyte count and tumor necrosis factor-alpha on early death in acute promyelocytic leukemia

BACKGROUND

Early death remains a major factor in survival in APL. We aimed to analyze the risk factors for differentiation syndrome and early death in acute promyelocytic leukemia (APL).

METHODS

The clinical data of APL patients who were newly diagnosed at Mianyang Central Hospital from January 2013 to January 2022 were retrospectively analyzed.

RESULTS

Eighty-six newly diagnosed APL patients (37 males and 49 females) were included in this study. The median age was 46 (17-75) years. Sixty-one patients (70.9%) had low/intermediate-risk APL, and 25 patients (29.1%) had high-risk APL. The incidence of differentiation syndrome (DS) was 62.4%. The multivariate analysis showed that a peak white blood cell (WBC) count ≥16 × 10^9/L was an independent risk factor (OR = 11.000, 95% CI: 2.830-42.756, P = 0.001) for DS in all APL patients, while a WBC count ≥10 × 10^9/L on Day 5 was an independent risk factor for DS in low-intermediate risk APL patients (OR = 9.114, 95% CI: 2.384-34.849, P = 0.001). There were 31 patients (36.5%) with mild DS and 22 patients (25.9%) with severe DS. The multivariate analysis showed that WBC count ≥23 × 10^9/L at chemotherapy was an independent risk factor for severe DS (OR = 10.500, 95% CI: 2.344-47.034, P = 0.002). The rate of early death (ED) was 24.4% (21/86). The multivariate analysis showed that male gender (OR = 7.578,95% CI:1.136-50.551, P = 0.036), HGB < 65 g/L (OR = 16.271,95% CI:2.012-131.594, P = 0.009) and WBC count ≥7 × 10^9/L on Day 3(OR = 23.359,95% CI:1.825-298.959, P = 0.015) were independent risk factors for ED. The WBC count at diagnosis, WBC count on Day 3 and WBC count on Day 5 had moderate positive correlations with tumor necrosis factor-α (TNF-α) at diagnosis, and the correlation coefficients were 0.648 (P = 0.012), 0.615 (P = 0.033), and 0.609 (P = 0.035), respectively. The WBC count had no correlation with IL-6.

CONCLUSION

During induction treatment, cytotoxic chemotherapy may need to be initiated to reduce the risk of DS for APL patients with a low-intermediate risk WBC count ≥10 × 10^9/L on Day 5 or for all patients with a peak WBC count ≥16 × 10^9/L. Patients with WBC > 7 × 10^9/L on Day 3 have a higher risk of ED. Leukocyte proliferation is associated with TNF-α rather than IL-6, and TNF-α may be a potential biomarker for predicting ED.

Real-life outcomes of unselected acute promyelocytic leukemia patients: a single-center 14-year experience

BACKGROUND

After the inclusion of all-trans retinoic acid (ATRA) into the treatment of Acute Promyelocytic leukemia (APL), a notable improvement concerning the survival rates of patients with APL has been observed. However, the population-based studies demonstrated that there was no marked improvement in the survival of patients after the 2000s. We aim to describe the clinical response and prognosis of adult patients diagnosed with APL and examine the change in these outcomes by the time period of diagnosis.

METHODS

We retrospectively reviewed thirty-six unselected APL patients who were diagnosed between September 2003 and February 2016.

RESULTS

The probability of survival at two years was 58%, while disease-free survival (DFS) was 87%. The overall early death (ED) rate was 33% and remain stable over time [42% in 2003-2009 vs. 24% in 2010-2016 (p=.20)]. In addition, the 2-year overall survival (OS) rates were 47% in 2003-2009 and 70% in 2010-2016 (p=.29), and no differences were noted. Univariate analyses showed possible predictors of poor OS were defined as leukocytosis (≥10x109/L), high Sanz score, hemorrhage, infection, disseminated intravascular coagulopathy (DIC) at presentation and microgranular morphologic subtype.

CONCLUSIONS

This study shows that long-term survival remains low in APL patients, particularly related to a high ED rate. Initiatives to reduce ED are exceedingly substantial for improving the survival in APL.