The purpose of this article is to review the status and limitations of anatomic tumor response metrics including the World Health Organization (WHO) criteria, the Response Evaluation Criteria in Solid Tumors (RECIST), and RECIST 1.1. This article also reviews qualitative and quantitative approaches to metabolic tumor response assessment with 18 F-FDG PET and proposes a draft framework for PET Response Criteria in Solid Tumors (PERCIST), version 1.0. Methods: PubMed searches, including searches for the terms RECIST, positron, WHO, FDG, cancer (in-cluding specific types), treatment response, region of interest, and derivative references, were performed. Abstracts and articles judged most relevant to the goals of this report were reviewed with emphasis on limitations and strengths of the anatomic and PET approaches to treatment response assessment. On the basis of these data and the authors' experience, draft criteria were formulated for PET tumor response to treatment.Results: Approximately 3,000 potentially relevant references were screened. Anatomic imaging alone using standard WHO, RECIST, and RECIST 1.1 criteria is widely applied but still has limitations in response assessments. For example, despite effective treatment, changes in tumor size can be minimal in tumors such as lymphomas, sarcoma, hepatomas, mesothelioma, and gastrointestinal stromal tumor. CT tumor density, contrast enhancement, or MRI characteristics appear more informative than size but are not yet routinely applied. RECIST criteria may show progression of tumor more slowly than WHO criteria. RECIST 1.1 criteria (assessing a maximum of 5 tumor foci, vs. 10 in RECIST) result in a higher complete response rate than the original RECIST criteria, at least in lymph nodes. Variability appears greater in assessing progression than in assessing response. Qualitative and quantitative approaches to 18 F-FDG PET response assessment have been applied and require a consistent PET methodology to allow quantitative assessments. Statistically significant changes in tumor standardized uptake value (SUV) occur in careful test-retest studies of high-SUV tumors, with a change of 20% in SUV of a region 1 cm or larger in diameter; however, medically relevant beneficial changes are often associated with a 30% or greater decline. The more extensive the therapy, the greater the decline in SUV with most effective treatments. Important components of the proposed PERCIST criteria include assessing normal reference tissue values in a 3-cm-diameter region of interest in the liver, using a consistent PET protocol, using a fixed small region of interest about 1 cm 3 in volume (1.2-cm diameter) in the most active region of metabolically active tumors to minimize statistical variability, assessing tumor size, treating SUV lean measurements in the 1 (up to 5 optional) most metabolically active tumor focus as a continuous variable, requiring a 30% decline in SUV for ''response,'' and deferring to RECIST 1.1 in cases that do not have 18 F-FDG avidity or are technically unsuitable...

Because of its potent immunosuppressive yet stem cell-sparing activity, highdose cyclophosphamide was tested as sole prophylaxis of graft-versus-host disease (GVHD) after myeloablative allogeneic bone marrow transplantation (alloBMT). We treated 117 patients (median age, 50 years; range, 21-66 years) with advanced hematologic malignancies; 78 had human leukocyte antigen (HLA)-matched related donors and 39 had HLAmatched unrelated donors. All patients received conventional myeloablation with busulfan/cyclophosphamide (BuCy) and T cell-replete bone marrow followed by 50 mg/kg/d of cyclophosphamide on days 3 and 4 after transplantation. The incidences of acute grades II through IV and grades III through IV GVHD for all patients were 43% and 10%, respectively. The nonrelapse mortality at day 100 and 2 years after transplantation were 9% and 17%, respectively. The actuarial overall survival and event-free survivals at 2 years after transplantation were 55% and 39%, respectively, for all patients and 63% and 54%, respectively, for patients who underwent transplantation while in remission.

Although some reports have found increasing HLA disparity between donor and recipient to be associated with fewer relapses after allogeneic blood or marrow transplantation (BMT), this potential benefit has been offset by more graft-versus-host disease (GVHD) and nonrelapse mortality. However, the type of GVHD prophylaxis could influence the balance between GVHD toxicity and relapse. We analyzed the impact of greater HLA disparity on outcomes of a specific platform for nonmyeloablative, HLA-haploidentical transplantation. A retrospective analysis was performed on 185 patients with hematologic malignancies enrolled on three similar trials of nonmyeloablative, related donor, haploidentical BMT incorporating high-dose posttransplantation cyclophosphamide for GVHD prophylaxis. No significant association was found between the number of HLA mismatches (HLA-A, -B, -Cw, and -DRB1 combined) and risk of acute grade II–IV GVHD (hazard ratio .89, P = .68 for 3–4 versus fewer antigen mismatches). More mismatching also had no detrimental effect on event-free survival (on multivariate analysis, hazard ratio .60, P = .03 for 3–4 versus fewer antigen mismatches; hazard ratio .55, P = .03 for 3–4 versus fewer allele mismatches). Thus, greater HLA disparity does not appear to worsen overall outcomes after nonmyeloablative haploidentical BMT with high-dose posttransplantation cyclophosphamide.

• Nonmyeloablative, related HLA-haploidentical BMT utilizing high-dose posttransplantation cyclophosphamide has a favorable safety profile.• Risk-stratified relapse and survival outcomes with this approach are comparable to those of HLA-matched BMT.Related HLA-haploidentical blood or marrow transplantation (BMT) with high-dose posttransplantation cyclophosphamide (PTCy) is being increasingly used because of its acceptable safety profile. To better define outcomes of nonmyeloablative (NMA) HLAhaploidentical BMT with PTCy, 372 consecutive adult hematologic malignancy patients who underwent this procedure were retrospectively studied. Risk-stratified outcomes were evaluated using the refined Disease Risk Index (DRI), developed to stratify disease risk across histologies and allogeneic BMT regimens. Patients received uniform conditioning, T-cell-replete allografting, then PTCy, mycophenolate mofetil, and tacrolimus. Six-month probabilities of nonrelapse mortality and severe acute graft-versus-host disease were 8% and 4%. With 4.1-year median follow-up, 3-year probabilities of relapse, progression-free survival (PFS), and overall survival (OS) were 46%, 40%, and 50%, respectively. By refined DRI group, low (n 5 71), intermediate (n 5 241), and high/very high (n 5 60) risk groups had 3-year PFS estimates of 65%, 37%, and 22% (P < .0001), with corresponding 3-year OS estimates of 71%, 48%, and 35% (P 5 .0001). On multivariable analyses, the DRI was statistically significantly associated with relapse, PFS, and OS (each P < .001). This analysis demonstrates that the DRI effectively risk stratifies recipients of NMA HLA-haploidentical BMT with PTCy and also suggests that this transplantation platform yields similar survivals to those seen with HLA-matched BMT. (Blood. 2015;125(19):3024-3031)

for the CONSERVE Group IMPORTANCE Extenuating circumstances can trigger unplanned changes to randomized trials and introduce methodological, ethical, feasibility, and analytical challenges that can potentially compromise the validity of findings. Numerous randomized trials have required changes in response to the COVID-19 pandemic, but guidance for reporting such modifications is incomplete.OBJECTIVE As a joint extension for the CONSORT and SPIRIT reporting guidelines, CONSERVE (CONSORT and SPIRIT Extension for RCTs Revised in Extenuating Circumstances) aims to improve reporting of trial protocols and completed trials that undergo important modifications in response to extenuating circumstances. EVIDENCE A panel of 37 international trial investigators, patient representatives, methodologists and statisticians, ethicists, funders, regulators, and journal editors convened to develop the guideline. The panel developed CONSERVE following an accelerated, iterative process between June 2020 and February 2021 involving (1) a rapid literature review of multiple databases (OVID Medline, OVID EMBASE, and EBSCO CINAHL) and gray literature sources from 2003 to March 2021; (2) consensus-based panelist meetings using a modified Delphi process and surveys; and (3) a global survey of trial stakeholders.FINDINGS The rapid review yielded 41 673 citations, of which 38 titles were relevant, including emerging guidance from regulatory and funding agencies for managing the effects of the COVID-19 pandemic on trials. However, no generalizable guidance for all circumstances in which trials and trial protocols might face unanticipated modifications were identified. The CONSERVE panel used these findings to develop a consensus reporting guidelines following 4 rounds of meetings and surveys. Responses were received from 198 professionals from 34 countries, of whom 90% (n = 178) indicated that they understood the concept definitions and 85.4% (n = 169) indicated that they understood and could use the implementation tool. Feedback from survey respondents was used to finalize the guideline and confirm that the guideline's core concepts were applicable and had utility for the trial community. CONSERVE incorporates an implementation tool and checklists tailored to trial reports and trial protocols for which extenuating circumstances have resulted in important modifications to the intended study procedures. The checklists include 4 sections capturing extenuating circumstances, important modifications, responsible parties, and interim data analyses.CONCLUSIONS AND RELEVANCE CONSERVE offers an extension to CONSORT and SPIRIT that could improve the transparency, quality, and completeness of reporting important modifications to trials in extenuating circumstances such as COVID-19.

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Key Points• Posttransplantation cyclophosphamide is effective as sole GVHD prophylaxis for myeloablative HLA-matched-related or -unrelated BMT.• Despite low chronic GVHD with PTCy, relapse and survival are comparable with outcomes reported using other GVHD prophylactic approaches.High-dose, posttransplantation cyclophosphamide (PTCy) reduces severe graft-versushost disease (GVHD) after allogeneic blood or marrow transplantation (alloBMT), but the impact of PTCy on long-term, disease-specific outcomes is unclear. We conducted a retrospective study of 209 consecutive adult patients transplanted for acute myeloid leukemia (AML, n 5 138), myelodysplastic syndrome (n 5 28), or acute lymphoblastic leukemia (ALL, n 5 43) using PTCy as sole GVHD prophylaxis after myeloablative conditioning and HLA-matched-related or -unrelated T-cell-replete allografting. At alloBMT, 30% of patients were not in morphologic complete remission. The cumulative incidences of grades II to IV and III to IV acute GVHD at 100 days and chronic GVHD at 2 years were 45%, 11%, and 13%, respectively. Forty-three percent of patients did not require immunosuppression for any reason beyond PTCy. At 3 years, relapse cumulative incidence was 36%, disease-free survival was 46%, survival free of disease and chronic GVHD was 39%, and overall survival was 58%. Lack of remission at alloBMT, adverse cytogenetics, and low allograft nucleated cell dose were associated with inferior survival for AML patients. Minimal residual disease but not t(9;22) was associated with inferior outcomes for ALL patients. The ability to limit posttransplantation immunosuppression makes PTCy a promising transplantation platform for the integration of postgrafting strategies to prevent relapse. (Blood. 2014;124(25):3817-3827) IntroductionHistorically, graft-versus-host disease (GVHD), particularly chronic GVHD (cGVHD), has been associated with a reduced risk of relapse after allogeneic blood or marrow transplantation (alloBMT).1-3 However, cGVHD is also the leading cause of late nonrelapse mortality (NRM) posttransplantation, contributing to the substantially elevated mortality risk in alloBMT survivors that continues for at least 15 years after transplantation. 4 In this context, the development of effective pharmacologic strategies for preventing cGVHD has proved to be challenging, and an estimated 41% to 60% of patients treated with calcineurin inhibitor (CNI) -based GVHD prophylaxis after HLA-matched-related or -unrelated allografting develop cGVHD.5-7 T-cell depletion (TCD), whether in vivo or in vitro, is effective in reducing cGVHD, but it can be associated with higher rates of infection, posttransplantation lymphoproliferative disorder, NRM, and disease relapse. 8,9 Initially developed as an approach to facilitate HLA-haploidentical alloBMT, high-dose, posttransplantation cyclophosphamide (PTCy) was found to be effective in preventing both acute GVHD (aGVHD) and cGVHD. [10][11][12] Subsequently, the efficacy of PTCy as sole GVHD prophylaxis after myeloablative conditioni...

Purpose Recent advances in nonmyeloablative (NMA), related HLA-haploidentical blood or marrow transplantation (haplo-BMT) have expanded the donor pool. This study evaluated the effect of age on NMA haplo-BMT outcomes in patients age 50 to 75 years. Patients and Methods A retrospective analysis was performed of 271 consecutive patients with hematologic malignancies, age 50 to 75 years, who received NMA, T-cell–replete haplo-BMT with high-dose post-transplantation cyclophosphamide. Results The median age was 61 years, with 115 patients (42%) age 50 to 59, 129 (48%) age 60 to 69, and 27 (10%) age 70 to 75 years. Overall, 84% of patients had intermediate- or high-/very high–risk disease. The 6-month probabilities of grade 3 or 4 acute graft-versus-host disease (GVHD) and nonrelapse mortality (NRM) were 3% and 8%, respectively. Patients in their 50s, 60s, and 70s had 6-month NRM probabilities of 8%, 9%, and 7%, respectively (P = .20). With a median follow-up of 4 years, corresponding 3-year progression-free survival probabilities were 39%, 35%, and 33% (P = .65), and corresponding 3-year overall survival probabilities were 48%, 45%, and 44% (P = .66). Three-year progression-free survival probabilities were 40% in acute myeloid leukemia (n = 65), 39% in aggressive non-Hodgkin lymphoma (n = 83), and 37% in indolent or mantle-cell lymphoma (n = 65). Older patient age was associated with a significantly higher risk of grade 2 to 4 acute GVHD but not grade 3 to 4 acute or chronic GVHD. No statistically significant associations were found between older age (relative to age 50 to 59 years or as a continuous variable) and NRM, relapse, or survival. Conclusion NMA haplo-BMT with post-transplantation cyclophosphamide has encouraging safety and survival outcomes in patients age 50 to 75 years. In patients otherwise fit for BMT, the results support consideration of this approach despite advanced age.