Several clinical trials have shown the superiority of high-dose therapy (HDT) and autologous stem cell transplantation (ASCT) over conventional dose therapy for patients with multiple myeloma. There is limited experience with non-cryopreserved autologous hematopoietic stem cell transplantation. Between January 2004 and February 2010, we treated 38 patients with myeloma (mean age = 50.6) with a preparative regimen of Melphalan 140-200 mg/m(2) and non-cryopreserved ASCT. All the apheresis products were kept in a conventional blood bank refrigerator at 4°C for 2 d before infusion. The median time to platelet count of >20 × 10(9) /L was 13 d (range 10-31). Also, the median time to absolute neutrophil count >0.5 × 10(9) /L was 11 d (range 9-21). All the 38 patients were engrafted and there was not graft failure in this study group. Twenty-nine of 38 (76.3%) patients are alive and without disease activity after a median follow-up of 31 months (range 6-77). Responses (complete and partial response) were seen in all the 38 patients. The median progression-free survival was 27 months with 95% confidence interval 23.52-30.48, whereas the median overall survival was 30 months. One hundred days transplant-related mortality was 0%. HDT and autologous transplantation without cryopreservation is an effective and safe method which simplifies the procedure and is feasible and cost saving in our patients.

Conclusions: These data demonstrate the safety and feasibility of BEAM-like regimen as a new and modified regimen; longer follow-up is required to evaluate fully efficacy and long-term safety of our method.

BackgroundTo describe a rare manifestation of mantle cell lymphoma (MCL) in conjunctiva, with clinical, hisologic, immunohistologic and genetic findings together with review of the Literature.Case presentationMost ocular adnexal lymphomas are extranodal marginal zone B-cell lymphomas of mucosa-associated lymphoid tissue (MALT). A few cases of ocular adnexal mantle cell lymphomas have been reported in the literature. We present a case of mantle cell lymphoma presenting as right conjunctival mass of at least three months duration in a 64-year-old man. Histopathologic examination showed a proliferation of monomorphous small-to-medium-sized lymphoid cells with cleaved nuclei in the subconjunctiva. By immunohistochemistry, the infiltrate was positive for CD20, CD5, BCL-2, cyclin D1, and the transcription factor SOX11. Fluorescent in situ hybridization demonstrated the presence of IGH-CCND1 fusion indicating t(11;14).ConclusionA rigorous approach to initial diagnosis and staging of small cell lymphomas of the ocular adnexa is needed. The recognition of ocular MCL requires appropriate immunohistochemical staining and/or genetic confirmation to differentiate this rare form of presentation of MCL from other more frequent small cell lymphomas.

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Kaposi sarcoma is a multicentric angioproliferative neoplasm of lymphatic endothelium-derived cells. Although this malignancy is relatively frequent after solid-organ transplant, it is extremely rare after bone marrow transplantation. Allogeneic stem cell transplantation is associated with severe prolonged immunosuppression; however, a few cases of Kaposi sarcoma after hematopoietic stem cell transplant were previously reported. Here, we report a case of Kaposi sarcoma after haploidentical allogeneic hematopoietic stem cell transplant. The patient was a known case of acute myelogenous leukemia and underwent transplant after relapse. Four months posttransplant, she presented with 3 dark blue or purplish small nodules on her face above the upper lip. Histopathologic study confirmed Kaposi sarcoma. Serum antibody against human herpes virus type 8 was positive. After discontinuation of immunosuppressive medication and cryotherapy for local control, Kaposi sarcoma skin nodules healed with residual pigmented skin lesions. The patient is currently in complete remission for Kaposi sarcoma and cured from acute myelogenous leukemia 36 months after stem cell transplant. Only 14 cases of Kaposi sarcoma after hematopoietic cell transplant have been previously reported in the literature (11 after allogeneic and 3 after autologous hematopoietic stem cell transplant). According to our knowledge from literature review, this case is the first report of Kaposi sarcoma after a haploidentical HLA match transplant. Key words: Acute myelogenous leukemia, HLA haploidentical match IntroductionHematopoietic stem cell transplant (HSCT) is an established treatment for many acquired and congenital disorders of the hematopoietic system. Kaposi sarcoma was first described in 1872 by Kaposi as a progressive sarcoma. 1 It is a multicentric angioproliferative neoplasm of lymphatic endotheliumderived cells. Kaposi sarcoma is classified into 4 types based on the clinical condition in which it develops: (1) sporadic or classic subtype, (2) endemic, (3) AIDS associated or epidemic Kaposi sarcoma, and (4) iatrogenic subtype in patients treated with immunosuppressive therapy medications, particularly in organ transplant recipients (typically seen with renal allografts).Kaposi sarcoma, which is shown relatively frequently after solid-organ transplant, is extremely rare after bone marrow transplant. Allogeneic stem cell transplant is associated with severe prolonged immunosuppression; however, a few cases of Kaposi sarcoma after HSCT were previously reported. [2][3][4][5][6][7][8][9][10] The cause of Kaposi sarcoma is complex but is almost certainly dependent on a gamma herpes virus, human herpes virus type 8 (HHV-8), as causal agent. 11,12 After allogeneic stem cell transplant, Kaposi sarcoma can develop when a patient is positive for HHV-8.Here, we report a case of Kaposi sarcoma after haploidentical allogeneic HSCT. The patient was a known case of acute myelogenous leukemia (AML) and underwent transplant after relapse. According to our knowle...

Background All cancer patients, except for a small fraction, seek treatment after becoming aware of the disease. That small fraction do not seek any treatment due to various reasons, and this phenomenon is unknown to us. Therefore, the present study aimed to discover the reasons for treatment refusal in cancer patients. Methods This qualitative grounded theory study was conducted on 22 participants including patients, caregivers, physicians, and nurses. Purposive theoretical sampling was employed. Data were collected through in-depth interviews. All interviews were gradually transcribed and analyzed. Data analysis was carried out through the three-step method of open, axial, and selective coding and was continued until theoretical saturation. Straussian Grounded Theory was used for data analysis. Results A total of 4 themes and 20 sub-themes were extracted in this study. The core variable extracted from the interviews was “resilience” Other related themes included encounter with cancer, fighting cancer, and coping with cancer. The findings showed that in the context of fighting cancer, patients lost their resilience through various processes and refused treatment. Conclusion Cancer patients abandon the treatment in silence, oncologists and even family members being unaware of the matter. In other words, refusal of treatment is like an iceberg and the majority of the patients who have abandoned treatment are unknown to the health system. The model obtained in this study can increase the knowledge of the process that leads patients to lose their resilience against cancer and abandon treatment, which can increase the possibility of recognizing and predicting treatment refusal for oncologists.

SummaryMany tumors that occasionally are benign in origin causes hypophosphatemic osteomalacia. Here we present a case of glomus tumor in a 59-year-old man with oncogenic osteomalacia. Diagnosis was made after observation of abnormal increase activity in octreotide scan. The magnetic resonance imaging showed a round lesion in left ankle joint. Surgical excision of tumor was curative and all symptoms and intractable hypophosphatemia improved after few weeks.

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