Yacoub et al report excellent responses to pegylated interferon alfa-2a in patients with hydroxyurea-resistant/intolerant polycythemia vera or essential thrombocythemia.

OBJECTIVES To measure short-term changes in physical and cognitive function and emotional well-being of older adults receiving intensive chemotherapy for acute myeloid leukemia (AML). DESIGN Prospective observational study. SETTING Single academic institution. PARTICIPANTS Individuals aged 60 and older with newly diagnosed AML who received induction chemotherapy (N = 49, mean age 70 ± 6.2, 56% male). MEASUREMENTS Geriatric assessment (GA) was performed during inpatient examination for AML and within 8 weeks after hospital discharge after induction chemotherapy. Measures were the Pepper Assessment Tool for Disability (activity of daily living, instrumental activity of daily living (IADL), mobility questions), Short Physical Performance Battery (SPPB), grip strength, Modified Mini-Mental State examination, Center for Epidemiologic Studies Depression Scale, and the Distress Thermometer. Changes in GA measures were assessed using paired t-tests. Analysis of variance models were used to evaluate relationships between GA variables and change in function over time. RESULTS After chemotherapy, IADL dependence worsened (mean 1.4 baseline vs 2.1 follow-up, P < .001), as did mean SPPB scores (7.5 vs 5.9, P = .02 for total). Grip strength also declined (38.9 ± 7.7 vs 34.2 ± 10.3 kg, P < .001 for men; 24.5 ± 4.8 vs 21.8 ± 4.7 kg, P = .007 for women). No significant changes in cognitive function (mean 84.7 vs 85.1, P = .72) or depressive symptoms (14.0 vs. 11.3, P = .11) were detected, but symptoms of distress declined (5.0 vs 3.2, P < .001). Participants with depressive symptoms at baseline and follow-up had greater declines in SPPB scores those without at both time points. CONCLUSIONS Short-term survivors of intensive chemotherapy for AML had clinically meaningful declines in physical function. These data support the importance of interventions to maintain physical function during and after chemotherapy. Depressive symptoms before and during chemotherapy may be linked to potentially modifiable physical function declines.

Objective Interferon α (IFNα) therapy leads to hematological remissions and a reduction of the JAK2V617F allele burden in patients with polycythemia vera (PV). In this study, the cellular target by which IFNα affects hematopoiesis in PV patients was evaluated. Materials and Methods CD34+ cells were isolated from normal bone marrow and the peripheral blood of patients with PV and were treated in vitro with each of the three commercially available forms of IFNα: IFNα 2b, pegylated IFN α 2a (Peg-IFNα 2a) and pegylated IFN α 2b (Peg-IFNα 2b). Results Each form of IFNα was equally potent in suppressing hematopoietic colony formation by normal CD34+ cells, but Peg-IFNα 2a and IFNα 2b were more effective than Peg-IFNα 2b in inhibiting BFU-E derived colony formation by PV CD34+ cells. In addition, exposure of PV CD34+ cells to equal doses of Peg-IFNα 2a and IFNα 2b resulted in a 38–40% reduction in the proportion of JAK2V617F-positive hematopoietic progenitor cells (HPC), while equivalent doses of Peg-IFNα 2b did not reduce the number of malignant HPC. Further studies explored the mechanism by which IFNα induced PV HPC growth inhibition. Treatment of Peg-IFNα 2a increased the rate of apoptosis of PV CD34+ cells and the phosphorylation/activation of p38 MAPK in PV CD34+ cells, while the p38-specific inhibitor SB203580 reversed the growth inhibition and apoptosis induced by Peg-IFNα 2a. Conclusion These data suggest that low doses of IFNα selectively and directly suppress PV JAK2V617F HPC and that these agents act through the p38 MAP kinase pathway.

The goal of therapy for essential thrombocythemia (ET) and polycythemia vera (PV) patients is to reduce thrombotic events by normalizing blood counts. Hydroxyurea (HU) and interferon-α (IFN-α) are the most frequently used cytoreductive options for ET and PV patients at high-risk for vascular complications. Myeloproliferative Disorders Research Consortium 112 was an investigator-initiated, phase 3 trial comparing HU to pegylated IFN-α (PEG) in treatment naïve, high-risk ET/PV patients. The primary endpoint was complete response (CR) rate at 12 months. A total of 168 patients were treated for a median of 81.0 weeks. CR for HU was 37% and 35% for PEG (p=0.80) at 12 months. At 24/36 months, CR was 20%/17% for HU and 29%/33% for PEG. PEG led to a greater reduction in JAK2V617F at 24 months, but histopathologic responses were more frequent with HU. Thrombotic events and disease progression were infrequent in both arms, while grade 3/4 adverse events were more frequent with PEG (46% vs. 28%). At 12 months of treatment there was no significant difference in CR rates between HU and PEG. This study indicates that PEG and HU are both effective treatments for PV and ET. With longer treatment PEG was more effective in normalizing blood counts and reducing driver mutation burden, while HU produced more histopathologic responses. Despite these differences, both agents did not differ in limiting thrombotic events and disease progression in high-risk ET/PV patients. (Funded by the National Cancer Institute, 5P01CA108671-09; clinicaltrials.gov number (NCT01259856)

CPI-613, a lipoate analogue that inhibits pyruvate dehydrogenase (PDH) and α-ketogluterate dehydrogenase (KGDH), has activity in patients with myeloid malignancies. This study explored the role of mitochondrial metabolism in chemotherapy response and determined the MTD, efficacy, and safety of CPI-613 combined with high-dose cytarabine and mitoxantrone in patients with relapsed or refractory acute myeloid leukemia. The role of mitochondrial response to chemotherapy was assessed in cell lines and animal models. A phase I study of CPI-613 plus cytarabine and mitoxantrone was conducted in patients with relapsed or refractory AML. Exposure to chemotherapy induced mitochondrial oxygen consumption that depended on PDH. CPI-613 sensitized AML cells to chemotherapy indicating that mitochondrial metabolism is a source of resistance. Loss of p53 did not alter response to CPI-613. The phase I study enrolled 67 patients and 62 were evaluable for response. The overall response rate was 50% (26CR+5CRi/62). Median survival was 6.7 months. In patients over 60 years old, the CR/CRi rate was 47% (15/32) with a median survival of 6.9 months. The response rate for patients with poor-risk cytogenetics also was encouraging with 46% (11/24 patients) achieving a CR or CRi. RNA sequencing analysis of a subset of baseline bone marrow samples revealed a gene expression signature consistent with the presence of B cells in the pretreatment marrow of responders. The addition of CPI-613 to chemotherapy is a promising approach in older patients and those with poor-risk cytogenetics. .

Polycythemia vera (PV) is a chronic myeloproliferative neoplasm that is associated with a substantial symptom burden, thrombohemorrhagic complications, and impaired survival. A decade after the seminal discovery of an activating mutation in the tyrosine kinase JAK2 in nearly all patients with PV, new treatment options are finally beginning to emerge, necessitating a critical reappraisal of the underlying pathogenesis and therapeutic modalities available for PV. Herein, we comprehensively review clinical aspects of PV including diagnostic considerations, natural history, and risk factors for thrombosis. We summarize recent studies delineating the genetic basis of PV, including their implications for evolution to myelofibrosis and secondary acute myeloid leukemia. We assess the quality of evidence to support the use of currently available therapies, including aspirin, phlebotomy, hydroxyurea, and interferon. We analyze recent studies evaluating the safety and efficacy of JAK inhibitors, such as ruxolitinib, and evaluate their role in the context of other available therapies for PV. This review provides a framework for practicing hematologists and oncologists to make rational treatment decisions for patients with PV.

Myeloproliferative neoplasms (MPN), including polycythemia vera, essential thrombocythemia, and primary myelofibrosis, have a propensity to evolve into accelerated and blast-phase disease (MPN-AP/BP), carrying a dismal prognosis. Conventional antileukemia therapy has limited efficacy in this setting. Thus, MPN-AP/BP is an urgent unmet clinical need. Modest responses to hypomethylating agents and single-agent ruxolitinib have been reported. More recently, combination of ruxolitinib and decitabine has demonstrated synergistic in vitro activity in human and murine systems. These observations led us to conduct a phase 1 study to explore the safety of combined decitabine and dose-escalated ruxolitinib in patients with MPN-AP/BP. A total of 21 patients were accrued to this multicenter study. Ruxolitinib was administered at doses of 10, 15, 25, or 50 mg twice daily in combination with decitabine (20 mg/m2 per day for 5 days) in 28-day cycles. The maximum tolerated dose was not reached. The most common reasons for study discontinuation were toxicity/adverse events (37%) and disease progression (21%). Fourteen patients died during study treatment period or follow-up. The median overall survival for patients on study was 7.9 months (95% confidence interval, 4.1-not reached). Among evaluable patients, the overall response rate by protocol-defined criteria (complete remission with incomplete count recovery + partial remission) was 9/17 (53%) and by intention-to-treat analysis was 9/21 (42.9%). The combination of decitabine and ruxolitinib was generally well tolerated by patients with MPN-AP/BP and demonstrates potentially promising clinical activity. A phase 2 trial evaluating the efficacy of this combination regimen is ongoing within the Myeloproliferative Disorder Research Consortium.

Background The hypomethylating agents (HA), azacitidine and decitabine, have emerged as an alternative to initial and salvage therapy in patients with AML. Little is known about how AML responds to hypomethylating agents after standard therapy and the activity of these agents in a real world setting is not well studied. Methods We retrospectively examined data for 75 consecutive AML patients at Wake Forest from 2002–2011 treated with HAs either as 1st line (n=34), salvage (n=28) or consolidation (n=13). We collected data on age, gender, race, Charlson Comorbidity index (CCI), cytogenetics, type of treatment, Complete Remission (CR), Complete Remission with incomplete count recovery (CRi), and survival. Statistical analysis was performed using Kaplan-Meier estimates and cox proportional hazards models. Results Frontline response rate (CR+CRi) was 26.5%, median overall survival (OS) was 3.4 (95% CI 1.3–7.4) months, with 18% alive at one year. In the salvage cohort, the response rate was significantly lower compared to frontline (3.6% versus 26.5%, p=0.017). Despite the reduced response, OS from time of HA treatment was longer than frontline at 8.2 (CI 4.8–10.3) months. In the consolidation cohort OS was 13.8 (CI 8.0 – 21.6) months with one patient in remission more than 30 months from diagnosis. Conclusion These data suggest prior cytotoxic therapy decrease marrow response rates to HAs but not survival. Furthermore, use of hypomethylating agents for consolidation resulted in a median overall survival over one year in a cohort of older patients. This suggests that hypomethylating agents have activity in all phases of AML treatment.