Cyclosporine therapy for acquired aplastic anemia: predictive factors for the response and long-term prognosis

Red blood cell distribution width as a prognostic factor in patients with aplastic anemia treated with cyclosporin A plus androgen or cyclosporine A alone: a retrospective study

OBJECTIVE

To explore the prognostic value of red blood cell distribution width (RDW) in newly diagnosed aplastic anemia (AA) patients treated with cyclosporine A (CsA) plus androgen or CsA alone.

METHODS

We retrospectively analyzed the clinical outcome of 220 patients with AA. According to the baseline level of RDW before treatment, the patients were divided into the high-RDW group (RDW ≥ 15%) and the normal-RDW group (RDW < 15%).

RESULTS

The median RDW of non-severe AA (NSAA) and severe AA (SAA) patients was 15.65% and 15.35%, respectively; this were significantly higher than that of very severe AA (VSAA) patients (13.35%). With median follow-up being 46 months, AA patients in the high-RDW group showed better 5-year OS and PFS than the normal-RDW group (93%: 75.3%; 74.3%: 61%). There was a higher ORR in the high-RDW group than the normal-RDW group (68.7%: 52.3%). The ORR of NSAA patients in the high-RDW group was better than that in the normal RDW group (75.8%: 60%). The 5-year OS of SAA/VSAA patients in the high-RDW group was significantly higher than the normal-RDW group (81.8%: 50.8%).

CONCLUSION

This is the first documentation on the prognostic value of RDW in AA patients receiving CsA treatment with long-term follow-up, which had shown that high RDW at diagnosis was a better prognostic factor.

Outcome of a novel immunosuppressive strategy of cyclosporine, levamisole and danazol for severe aplastic anemia

Treatment options for patients with severe aplastic anemia (SAA) in developing countries are limited. A cohort of 261 patients with SAA received a novel immunosuppressive strategy of cyclosporine alternately combined with levamisole plus danazol (CSA&LMS-based regimen), which included 70 VSAA and 191 moderate SAA [initial absolute neutrophil count (ANC) >200/μL] cases. The CSA&LMS-based regimen was administrated orally with an initial dose of CSA 3 mg/kg in adults and 5 mg/kg in children every other day, LMS 150 mg in adults and 2.5 mg/kg in children every other day, and danazol (5.0-10.0) mg/kg daily, continued for 12 more months, followed by slow tapering. The 6-month response rates were 24.3 and 52.9 % for VSAA and moderate SAA (P < 0.001), respectively. Univariate and multivariate analyses demonstrated that younger age, higher pretreatment absolute reticulocyte count and ANC were favorable factors for achieving response at 6 months. The estimated 5-year overall survival rates were 33.8 % (95 % CI 20.6-47 %) and 80.5 % (95 % CI 69.7-91.3 %) for VSAA and moderate SAA, respectively (P < 0.001). To date, nine patients relapsed, and six patients evolved to clonal disorders. Thus, CSA&LMS-based regimen may represent a promising immunosuppressive strategy for moderate SAA.

A promising immunosuppressive strategy of cyclosporine alternately combined with levamisole is highly effective for moderate aplastic anemia

The appropriate management of patients with moderate aplastic anemia (mAA) remains to be unclear and controversial. A cohort of 118 patients with mAA received a novel immunosuppressive strategy of cyclosporine alternately combined with levamisole (CSA and LMS regimen), which included 42 newly diagnosed and 76 chronic (disease duration >6 months) cases. CSA and LMS regimen was orally administrated with the initial dose of CSA 3 mg/kg per day in adults or 5 mg/kg per day in children, and LMS 150 mg per day in adults or 2.5 mg/kg per day in children, continued for 12 more months after achieving maximal hematologic response, followed by a slow tapering. The overall response rates were of 100 and 86.8 % for newly diagnosed and chronic group, respectively. The 24-month progression-free survival were 95.2 % (95 % confidence intervals [CI], 85.9-100 %) and 93.6 % (95 % CI, 86.9-100 %) for newly diagnosed and chronic group, respectively (P = 0.50). The 2-year event-free survival for the patients in newly diagnosed group (86.6 %; 95 % CI, 70.4-100 %) was superior to that in chronic group (57.0 %; 95 % CI, 43.5-70.4 %, P = 0.001). To date, 11 patients relapsed and no patients evolved to clonal disorders. Thus, CSA and LMS regimen represents a promising immunosuppressive strategy for mAA.