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E J Shpall

Publications and source records attributed to E J Shpall.

At least 19 recordsLinked to original sources

Incidence of tumor-cell contamination in leukapheresis products of breast cancer patients mobilized with stem cell factor and granulocyte colony-stimulating factor (G-CSF) or with G-CSF alone.

We have assessed tumor contamination of peripheral blood progenitor cells (PBPC) in 203 high-risk breast cancer patients who were prospectively randomized to mobilization with stem cell factor (SCF) plus granulocyte colony-stimulating factor (G-CSF) versus G-CSF alone. The patients then received high-dose cyclophosphamide, cisplatin, and carmustine (BCNU) with PBPC support. One bone marrow aspirate obtained before treatment, one whole blood specimen obtained before cytokine infusion, and one to five leukapheresis products were tested for the presence of tumor cells by an alkaline phosphatase immunocytochemical technique with a targeted sensitivity of 1.7 tumor cells per 10(6) hematopoietic cells. Tumor cells were detected in the bone marrow, peripheral blood, and/or PBPC of 21 patients (10%). In 14 patients, bone marrow specimens were tumor-positive; in seven patients, premobilization whole blood specimens were tumor-positive, and in eight patients, leukapheresis products were tumor-positive. In five patients, repetitive or multiple specimens were tumor-positive, and in three cases, marrow, peripheral blood, and PBPC products were all tumor-positive. Nine of the patients in whom tumor cells were found in marrow or peripheral blood were clinical stage II to III and 12 were clinical stage IV. Nine of the tumor-positive patients were in the SCF + G-CSF arm and 12 were in the G-CSF arm. Tumor cells were detected in leukapheresis products of eight patients: three in the G-CSF + SCF arm and five in the G-CSF arm. We conclude that detectable tumor-cell contamination of bone marrow, peripheral blood, and/or PBPC occurred in approximately 10% of patients in this trial and was observed in stage II to III patients, as well as in stage IV patients. No significant difference could be found in the rate of PBPC tumor-cell contamination between patients who received SCF + G-CSF compared with those who received G-CSF alone. Neither mobilization regimen was found to increase the rate of tumor-cell contamination when control premobilization blood samples were compared with leukapheresis products.

Breast Neoplasms

A randomized phase 3 study of peripheral blood progenitor cell mobilization with stem cell factor and filgrastim in high-risk breast cancer patients.

This randomized study compared the number of leukaphereses required to collect an optimal target yield of 5 x 10(6) CD34(+) peripheral blood progenitor cells/kg, using either stem cell factor (SCF) at 20 micrograms/kg/d in combination with Filgrastim at 10 micrograms/kg/d or Filgrastim alone at 10 micrograms/kg/d, from 203 patients with high-risk stage II, III, or IV breast cancer. Leukapheresis began on day 5 of cytokine administration and continued daily until the target yield of CD34(+) cells had been reached or a maximum of 5 leukaphereses performed. By day 5 of leukapheresis, 63% of the patients treated with SCF plus Filgrastim (n = 100) compared with 47% of those receiving Filgrastim alone (n = 103) reached the CD34(+) cell target yield. There was a clinically and statistically significant reduction (P <.05) in the number of leukaphereses required to reach the target yield for the patients receiving SCF plus Filgrastim (median, 4 leukaphereses) compared with patients receiving Filgrastim alone (median, 6 or more leukapherses; ie, <50% of patients reached the target in 5 leukaphereses). All patients receiving SCF were premedicated with antihistamines, albuterol, and pseudoephedrine. Treatment was safe, generally well tolerated, and not associated with life-threatening or fatal toxicity. In conclusion, SCF plus Filgrastim is a more effective peripheral blood progenitor cell (PBPC)-mobilization regimen than Filgrastim alone. In addition to the potential for reduced leukapheresis-related morbidity and costs, SCF offers additional options for obtaining cells for further graft manipulation.

Adult

Ex-vivo expansion of hematopoietic progenitor cells: preliminary results in breast cancer.

Ex-vivo expanded progenitor cells have been proposed as a source of cells to support high-dose chemotherapy and to decrease or eliminate the period of neutropenia following transplantation. To date, no clinical studies using ex vivo expanded cells, have demonstrated any decrease in the time to neutrophil or platelet recovery, although a number of clinical studies have been performed using a variety of growth factor cocktails and culture conditions. Over the past 6 years we have developed a static culture system that results in optimal expansion of myeloid progenitor cells. We have initiated a clinical study to evaluate this culture system in breast cancer patients receiving peripheral blood progenitor cells (PBPC) to support high-dose chemotherapy. CD34 selected cells were cultured for 10 days in 800 ml of defined media (Amgen Inc.) containing 100 ng/ml each of rhSCF, rhG-CSF and rhMGDF in 1L teflon bags (American Fluoroseal) at 20,000 to 50,000 cells per ml. After culture the cells were washed with 3 volumes of PBS to remove all media and growth factors and reinfused on day 0 of transplant followed by daily administration of rhG-CSF. On day +1 the patients received an unexpanded PBPC product to ensure the durability of the graft. Patients transplanted with expanded PBPC cells recovered neutrophil counts (ANC > 500/microl) as early as day 4 post transplant with a median of 6 days (range 4 to 14 days). In comparison, our historical control group of patients (N=175) had a median time to neutrophil engraftment of 9 days (range 7 to 24 days). A second cohort of patients were transplanted with expanded cells alone and a similar rapid engraftment was obtained. The first patients are now over 70 days post transplant with durable engraftment. No effect on platelet recovery has been observed in any patients to date. These data demonstrate that PBPC expanded under the conditions defined can significantly shorten the time to engraftment of neutrophils.

Breast Neoplasms

Autologous stem-cell transplantation for solid tumors in adults.

Over the last decade, high-dose chemotherapy (HDC) with autologous stem-cell transplantation has been explored for a variety of solid tumors in adults, particularly breast cancer, ovarian cancer, and nonseminomatous germ-cell tumors. Response of phase II studies are encouraging in most cases, and, in certain settings, seem clearly superior to historical results of conventional-dose chemotherapy. The value of HDC for adult solid tumors is a highly controversial issue, currently being addressed in large randomized phase II trials. This article reviews the results of HDC in different diseases and depicts potential directions of future progress.

Adult

The utilization of cytokines in stem cell mobilization strategies.

High-dose myeloablative chemotherapy supported by peripheral blood progenitor cell (PBPC) transplant is rapidly replacing bone marrow transplant to treat a number of chemosensitive cancers. Numerous investigators have studied the relationship of CD34+ cell dose and engraftment kinetics in an effort to help define minimum and optimum target stem cell doses. A number of studies suggest that reinfusion of > or = 5 x 10(6) CD34+ PBPCs results in prompt and durable platelet engraftment. Mobilization of stem cells can be accomplished through use of chemotherapy alone, colony-stimulating factors, or a combination of the two. Strategies to improve PBPC yields include filgrastim in combination with chemotherapy or with other hematopoietic growth factors. In this paper, the advantages and disadvantages of these strategies will be discussed, and the results of a recently conducted, randomized, controlled phase 3 clinical trial in breast cancer patients receiving either SCF plus filgrastim or filgrastim alone for PBPC mobilization will be reviewed.

Antineoplastic Combined Chemotherapy Protocols

Post-mortem incidental finding of cytomegalovirus oophoritis after an allogeneic stem cell transplant.

Cytomegalovirus (CMV) disease is a common and serious complication of allogeneic stem cell transplantation (SCT). Its two most frequent manifestations are interstitial pneumonitis and gastroenteritis. We describe here the first reported case of CMV ovarian infection in an allo-SCT recipient. This patient was included in a clinical trial of high-dose chemotherapy (HDCT) with HLA-matched peripheral SCT for metastatic breast cancer. She expired 53 days after transplantation from organ failure unrelated to her CMV oophoritis.

Antineoplastic Combined Chemotherapy Protocols

Modification of the pharmacokinetics of high-dose cyclophosphamide and cisplatin by antiemetics.

Interpatient variability in exposure to certain chemotherapy agents can influence patient outcome, particularly with high-dose chemotherapy. We evaluated the possibility of a pharmacokinetic (PK) drug-drug interaction between the antiemetic agents and high-dose cyclophosphamide, cisplatin and BCNU (CPA/cDDP/BCNU). Twenty-three self-selected patients treated with high-dose CPA/cDDP/BCNU followed by autologous hematopoietic progenitor cell support (AHPCS) received ondansetron, lorazepam and diphenhydramine as antiemetics. PK parameters for each chemotherapeutic drug in the regimen were compared with those of 129 patients who received exactly the same chemotherapy but an antiemetic regimen substituting prochlorperazine for ondansetron. In addition, we performed a review of the English literature for reported drug-drug interactions between antiemetics and chemotherapy agents that led to modifications in any PK parameters of the chemotherapy agent. Our retrospective study showed that the mean area under the curve (AUC) for both cyclophosphamide (76,600 vs 90,600 microg/ml/min, P=0.001) and cisplatin (525 vs 648 microg/ml/min, P = 0.01) were significantly lower in the ondansetron group when compared with the prochlorperazine group. The AUC for BCNU was not significantly different in both groups (544 vs 677, P = 0.43). We found only one report of modifications of the PK parameters of high-dose chemotherapy agents due to drug-drug interactions with the most commonly used antiemetics in a review of the English literature between 1966 and 1995. We concluded that the AUC of high-dose cyclophosphamide and cisplatin are significantly lower when ondansetron, as opposed to prochlorperazine, is used as the antiemetic. The small sample size and heterogeneity of this group of patients precludes any outcome analysis of pharmacodynamic endpoints such as toxicity or antitumor effect. Nevertheless, the potential for interactions between antiemetics and chemotherapy agents should be taken into account when using different high-dose chemotherapy regimens.

Adult

Optic disc and retinal microvasculopathy after high-dose chemotherapy and autologous hematopoietic progenitor cell support.

The purpose of this study was to prospectively evaluate the retinal and optic nerve changes in patients undergoing high-dose chemotherapy (HDC) followed by autologous hematopoietic progenitor cell support (AHPCS). One hundred and forty patients undergoing HDC and AHPCS underwent extensive pre- and post-transplant ophthalmologic evaluations for development of retinal microvascular complications. One hundred and ten patients received high-dose cyclophosphamide, cisplatin and BCNU; thirty received identical doses of cyclophosphamide and cisplatin, but received paclitaxel instead of BCNU. Thirty-four patients (24%) had retinal findings of either cotton wool spots (CWS) (n = 20) or retinal hemorrhages (n = 18) during follow-up, which ranged from 1 to 12 months. Ten (7%) of these patients, all of whom received BCNU, showed ocular toxicity characterized by CWS 1 to 4 months post transplant (n = 10); optic disc edema (n = 3); and variable vision loss associated with the onset of BCNU-induced pulmonary toxicity. Retinal and optic disc microvascular complications may occur after high-dose chemotherapy followed by AHPCS. The association of ischemic retinal lesions and/or optic disc edema with BCNU-induced pulmonary toxicity and the lack of ocular toxicity in patients that did not receive BCNU may suggest that BCNU is the etiologic agent.

Adult

Depletion of CD34+ CD4+ cells in bone marrow from HIV-1-infected individuals.

Pancytopenia as a consequence of bone marrow abnormalities is commonly seen in HIV-infected individuals. To examine the effect that HIV-1 has on hematopoietic cells, we compared hematopoietic properties of bone marrow samples from HTV+ patients at various stages of disease with bone marrow samples from uninfected donors. While the absolute number of recovered CD34+ cells and the cloning efficiency of these cells did not differ significantly in HIV+ donors, the percentage of CD34+ CD4+ cells was significantly depleted in late-stage HIV+ patients. We observed a direct correlation between the numbers of CD34+ CD4+ cells in the bone marrow and the peripheral CD4 count. Further characterization of the CD34+ CD4+ subpopulation demonstrated that these cells expressed lower levels of HLA-DR on their surface compared with CD34+ CD4- cells, suggesting an immature phenotype. We also found evidence for expression of HIV-1 coreceptors CXCR-4 and CKR-5 message and protein in CD34+ bone marrow cells. While this finding suggested that hematopoietic cells might be susceptible to HIV infection at an early stage of maturation, thus affecting different cell lineages as they matured, we did not find any evidence for infection of HIV in these cells. These data suggest that HIV affects early hematopoietic progenitor cells either directly or indirectly, and in particular CD34+ CD4+ cells. This finding has important implications for disease pathogenesis and for application of gene therapy approaches that use CD34+ hematopoietic cells.

Acquired Immunodeficiency Syndrome

Prognostic and predictive factors for patients with metastatic breast cancer undergoing aggressive induction therapy followed by high-dose chemotherapy with autologous stem-cell support.

PURPOSE: We performed a retrospective review to determine predictive and prognostic factors in patients with metastatic breast cancer who received induction therapy, and, if they responded to treatment, high-dose chemotherapy. PATIENTS AND METHODS: Patients with metastatic breast cancer received induction therapy with doxorubicin, fluorouracil, and methotrexate (AFM). Partial responders then received immediate high-dose chemotherapy, whereas those who achieved complete remission were randomized to immediate or delayed high-dose chemotherapy with hematopoietic stem-cell support. We performed a retrospective review of data from these patients and used Cox proportional hazards regression models for analyses. RESULTS: The overall response rate for the 425 patients enrolled was 74% (95% confidence interval, 70% to 78%). Multivariate analysis of data from all 425 patients revealed that positive estrogen receptor status (P =.0041), smaller metastatic foci (</= 2 v > 2 cm) (P =. 0165), a longer disease-free interval from initial diagnosis to diagnosis of metastases (</= 2 v > 2 years) (P =.0051), and prior treatment with tamoxifen (P =.0152) were good prognostic signs for overall survival. Patients who had received prior adjuvant therapy (P =.0001) and those who developed liver metastases (P =.0001) had decreased long-term survival. In the subgroup of responders to AFM induction, multivariate analysis showed that those with visceral metastases did less well (P =.0006), as did patients who had received prior adjuvant therapy (P =.0023). However, those who had received tamoxifen therapy in the adjuvant setting did better (P =. 0143). CONCLUSION: The chance for long-term remission with induction therapy with AFM and high-dose chemotherapy is increased for hormone receptor positive-patients with nonvisceral metastases who have not received prior adjuvant chemotherapy and have long disease-free intervals.

Adult

Acute encephalopathy: a new toxicity associated with high-dose paclitaxel.

The purpose of this study was to describe acute encephalopathy as a new toxicity associated with paclitaxel, when it is delivered at high doses (> or =600 mg/m2) with stem cell support. A total of 129 patients, included in clinical trials of paclitaxel-containing high-dose chemotherapy, were analyzed. A total of 114 patients received paclitaxel at a dose of > or =600 mg/m2. Six patients presented acute encephalopathy starting between 7 and 23 days after paclitaxel treatment; two of them had received prior whole-brain irradiation. Paclitaxel was given alone (one patient), with cyclophosphamide and cisplatin (two patients), and with cyclophosphamide and cisplatin plus 1,3-bis(2-chloroethyl)-1-nitrosourea (three patients). Central nervous system toxicity consisted of rapid obtundation and coma (five patients) and severe confusional picture with paranoid ideations (one patient). Brain magnetic resonance imaging showed diffuse white matter atrophy (one patient) or multiple small infarcts (one patient), or it was normal (four patients). Other complementary tests, including cerebrospinal fluid analysis and electroencephalography, were nondiagnostic. An effect from concomitant psychotropic medications or from other organ toxicities was excluded in all patients. Three patients recovered after 8-15 days, either spontaneously (two patients) or after high-dose steroids (one patient). Three patients died of irreversible coma. Necropsy, performed in two patients, showed generalized white matter atrophy and multiple brain parenchymal infarcts, respectively. No pharmacodynamic correlation between the occurrence of encephalopathy and a pharmacokinetic parameter of paclitaxel could be identified. Paclitaxel-containing high-dose chemotherapy can cause severe acute encephalopathy. An aggravating effect from prior brain irradiation or concurrent 1,3-bis(2-chloroethyl)-1-nitrosourea seems possible.

Antineoplastic Agents, Alkylating

Nonpredictable pharmacokinetic behavior of high-dose cyclophosphamide in combination with cisplatin and 1,3-bis(2-chloroethyl)-1-nitrosourea.

Our objective was to assess whether the total area under the curve (AUC) of high-dose cyclophosphamide (CPA), combined with cisplatin and 1,3-bis(2-chloroethyl)-1-nitrosourea, could be predicted from its AUC on the first day of treatment. We reviewed the AUC of CPA in 470 patients who underwent pharmacokinetic monitoring of the drug. All patients received the same high-dose regimen of CPA, cisplatin, and 1,3-bis(2-chloroethyl)-1-nitrosourea (STAMP-I) with identical antiemetic support. Subsequently, patients who experienced a toxic death, relapsed after high-dose chemotherapy, or remained relapse-free at a minimum follow-up of 1 year after high-dose chemotherapy were analyzed for a correlation between the total AUC of CPA and both relapse-free survival and toxic death. The AUC of CPA decreased from day 1 to day 2 in most patients. However, its changes from day 2 to day 3 varied significantly. Neither the value of AUC on day 1 nor its decreasing trend from day 2 to day 3 could predict the AUC on day 3 and the total AUC. Our pharmacodynamic analysis in 335 patients failed to show a correlation between the total AUC of CPA and either toxic death or relapse-free survival. The significant intersubject variability in the AUC of CPA makes the final AUC of the drug unpredictable from an initial measurement on day 1. Thus, in this combination, measurement of levels of parent CPA, with the objective of real-time therapeutic monitoring of this drug, is not informative.

Analysis of Variance

Phase II trial of high-dose chemotherapy with autologous stem cell transplant for stage IV breast cancer with minimal metastatic disease.

The purpose of this study was to assess the efficacy of high-dose chemotherapy (HDC) with autologous stem cell transplant in stage IV breast cancer patients with minimal metastases. Eligible patients had (a) disease that could be resected en bloc and/or irradiated with curative intent using a single field and could, thus, be rendered as having no evidence of disease (NED); and/or (b) <5% bone marrow involvement. From September 1991 to August 1997, 40 consecutive patients were prospectively entered on the study. Pre-HDC local treatment consisted of surgery (n = 31) and radiotherapy (XRT; n = 3). All patients received HDC with cyclophosphamide, cisplatin, and 1,3-bis(2-chloroethyl)-1-nitrosourea and autologous stem cell transplant, with or without CD34 selection. Following HDC, 22 patients received XRT. Four patients died of treatment-related complications. Eighteen patients developed grade 3 nonhematological toxicities (15 lung, 2 cardiomyopathy, and 1 optic neuritis), which resolved with therapy. Within a median follow-up of 49 (15-91) months, 14 patients had relapsed. Twenty-five patients (62.5%) were alive, and 22 patients (55%) were alive and free of disease. Median event-free and overall survivals were 43 and 77 months, respectively. In the subset of patients with one metastatic site, 17 of 24 (68%) remained relapse free. Grade 2 tumors, a single metastatic site, and delivery of XRT were favorable predictors of relapse-free survival in univariate but not multivariate analyses. Inclusion of HDC, as described, in the multimodal treatment of stage IV breast cancer patients with minimal metastases is promising. These results warrant prospective randomized trials with a HDC-containing arm in this patient population.

Adult

Empirical criteria for the selection of quality-of-life instruments for the evaluation of peripheral blood progenitor cell transplantation.

We propose a method for selecting quality-of-life instruments for use in phase III trials using the convergent validity of patient responses collected in phase I and II clinical trials. Two generic and two disease-specific instruments were administered to patients with breast cancer undergoing peripheral blood progenitor cell mobilization and transplantation. They included the visual analog scale from the EuroQoL EQ5D instrument, the SF-36, the European Organization for Research and Treatment of Cancer (EORTC)-QLQ-C30, and the Functional Assessment of Cancer Therapy instrument. No single instrument was found to have superior convergent validity in all domains, but the EORTC-QLQ-C30 seemed to perform better than the SF-36.

Adult

Effect of CD34+ peripheral blood progenitor cell dose on hematopoietic recovery.

The CD34+ cell surface antigen is expressed on progenitor cells required for blood stem cell transplantation. The number of cells expressing CD34+ can be used to assess the peripheral blood progenitor cell (PBPC) graft quality and predict hematopoietic recovery after engraftment. Because there is considerable variability among centers in the determination of CD34+ cell counts, standardizing flow cytometry methodology is essential. It is necessary to define a minimum safety threshold CD34+ cell dose for hematopoietic cell transplantation. This minimum dose would define a cell number in the graft, below which a proportion of patients would be expected to have delayed hematopoietic recovery or failure to engraft. We reviewed data from numerous studies. Although 1-2 x 10(6) CD34+ cells/kg can be considered an adequate graft, available data suggested that doses >5 x 10(6) CD34+ cells/kg were associated with more rapid engraftment and a lower probability of graft failure. The risk of delayed recovery was inversely related to CD34+ cell dose. Delayed recovery may result in greater transfusion requirements, longer hospitalization, increased antibiotic use and growth factor support, and higher health care costs. The extent of prior chemotherapy and radiation treatment are major risk factors for poor PBPC collection. To achieve an optimal CD34+ cell yield, PBPC collection should be initiated early during therapy. PBPC collection should be coordinated with the anticipated number of chemotherapy cycles, duration of chemotherapy, interval between chemotherapy and apheresis, need for radiotherapy, and exposure to the more progenitor cell-toxic drugs such as carmustine or busulfan.

Antigens, CD34

CD19 selection improves the sensitivity of B cell lymphoma detection.

Reinfusion of residual tumor cells into B cell non-Hodgkin's lymphoma (B-NHL) patients during autologous transplantation may be an important cause of disease relapse. Determining the extent to which B-NHL cells are present in autologous progenitor cell products and if the presence of residual B-NHL cells is predictive of relapse will require extremely sensitive methods of detecting rare B-NHL cells. We attempted to improve the sensitivity of polymerase chain reaction (PCR)-based detection of rare B-NHL cells by preselecting CD19+ cells using an immunomagnetic column. To measure detection sensitivity, we prepared samples containing different levels of B-NHL cell contamination by mixing B-NHL cell lines containing the chromosomal translocation t(14;18) bcl-2/JH) with control leukapheresis samples. DNA extracted from each CD19-selected sample and from each matched nonselected sample was added to a PCR to amplify the bcl-2/JH breakdown junction. CD19 preselection improved the sensitivity of detection of t(14;18)-positive B-NHL cells 115-fold, so that B-NHL cells at a concentration of 1 tumor cell per 1 x 10(6) hematopoietic cells were detected in every specimen evaluated. t(14;18)-positive cells were not detected in any of 13 control leukapheresis specimens. We conclude that a combination of CD19 preselection and PCR amplification may improve the sensitivity of detection of rare lymphoma cells by two orders of magnitude without a significant decrease in specificity.

Antigens, CD19

Diphtheria toxin A gene-mediated HIV-1 protection of cord blood-derived T cells in the SCID-hu mouse model.

The reconstitutive potential of CD34+-derived cord blood (CB) cells, transduced with a regulated diphtheria toxin A (DT-A) chain gene, was examined in SCID-hu mice harboring a conjoint organ composed of human thymus and liver (thy/liv). The DT-A-transduced cells, injected directly into the thy/liv organ, showed the same engraftment potential as control CB cells transduced with the non-DT-A parental vector. CB cells, distinguishable from the thy/liv cells by the HLA marker B7, were preferentially maintained in ex vivo culture. In the thy/liv organ, the engrafted CB cells represented >80% of the total cells. A majority of cells (>70%) in the thy/liv organ were also CD4+CD8+, as would be expected of maturing thymocytes. The incidence of double-positive cells was highest at 44 days (compared with 30 days and 80 days) after injection of CB cells. This suggested that a minimum time was required to achieve optimal proliferation of cells in the thy/liv organ but that, at later times, all of the early cells had matured. Thus, the population used for engraftment contained early cells but not self-renewing cells. The double-positive cells matured rapidly into single-positive cells (either CD4+ or CD8+) when placed in ex vivo culture. Marked cells (neo+) could readily be detected in the thy/liv-derived cells. The cells transduced with DT-A showed long-term protection in ex vivo culture against HIV T lymphotropic isolate NL4-3. This study shows that DT-A-transduced cells had no apparent disadvantage in engraftment of the thy/liv organ and did not have any toxic effects in vivo. Such cells were protected against HIV infection even when challenged more than 2 months after transduction and after a 44-day engraftment period in the thy/liv mice. These data support the feasibility of toxin gene therapy as a strategy for HIV infection.

Animals