Gprasp1 and Gprasp2 encode proteins that control the stability and cellular trafficking of CXCR4, a master regulator of hematopoiesis whose dynamic regulation is required for appropriate trafficking of B-cells in the germinal center (GC). Here, we report that Gprasp1 and Gprasp2-deficient B-cells accumulate in the GC and show transcriptional abnormalities, affecting the mechanisms controlling Aicda expression and exposing them to excessive somatic hypermutation. Consequently, about 30% of mice transplanted with Gprasp-deficient hematopoietic stem and progenitor cells developed a biologically aggressive and fatal B-cell hyperproliferative disease by 20–50 weeks posttransplant. Histological and molecular profiling reveal that Gprasp1- and Gprasp2-deficient neoplasms morphologically resemble human high-grade B-cell lymphomas of germinal center origin with shared morphologic features of both Burkitt Lymphoma (BL) and diffuse large B-cell lymphoma (DLBCL), and molecular features consistent with DLBCL, as well as elevated mutational burden and heterogenous transcriptional and mutational signature. Thus, reduced Gprasp1 and Gprasp2 gene expression perturbs B-cell maturation and increases the risk of B-cell neoplasms of germinal center origin. As this model recapitulates the essential features of the heterogenous group of human hematopoietic malignancies, it could be a powerful tool to interrogate the mechanisms of lymphomagenesis for these cancers.
Information on late complications in patients with acute leukemia who have undergone allogeneic hematopoietic cell transplantation (HCT) is limited. We performed a left-truncated analysis of long-term survival in patients with acute leukemia who were alive and disease-free 2 years after HCT. We included 2701 patients with acute lymphoblastic leukemia (ALL) and 9027 patients with acute myeloid leukemia (AML) who underwent HCT between 2005 and 2012. The 10-year overall survival (OS) rate was 81.3% for ALL and 76.2% for AML, with the main causes of late mortality being relapse (ALL-33.9%, AML-44.9%) and chronic graft-versus-host disease (ALL-29%, AML-18%). At 10 years, HCT-related mortality was 16.8% and 20.4%, respectively. Older age and unrelated donor transplantation were associated with a worse prognosis for both types of leukemia. In addition, transplantation in the second or third complete remission and peripheral blood HSC for ALL are associated with worse outcomes. Similarly, adverse cytogenetics, female donor to male patient combination, and reduced intensity conditioning in AML contribute to poor prognosis. We conclude that 2-year survival in remission after HCT for acute leukemia is encouraging, with OS of nearly 80% at 10 years. However, the long-term mortality risk of HCT survivors remains significantly higher than that of the age-matched general population. These findings underscore the importance of tailoring transplantation strategies to improve long-term outcomes in patients with acute leukemia undergoing HCT.
We performed a cohort study that included all patients with relapsed/refractory chronic lymphocytic leukemia (R/R CLL) who received ibrutinib in the Italian National Health Service. With a median follow-up of 42.2 months (IQR 30.8–54.6 months), the study involved 3306 patients with a median age of 72.1 years, of whom 42.6% had received ≥2 previous lines of treatment. The estimated 24-month probabilities of being on treatment and alive were 57.9% (95% confidence interval [CI]: 59.6–56.2) and 76.6% (95% CI: 75.2–78.1), respectively. The median time to treatment discontinuation (TTD) was 31.3 months (95% CI: 29.5–33.5). Out of 3306 patients, 2015 (60.9%) discontinued treatment, with 993 cases attributed to death or disease progression (30.0% of all cases). Among the 1022 patients who discontinued treatment for reasons other than progression or death, 564 (17.1%) patients did so due to toxicity or medical decision, while 458 patients (13.8%) were lost to follow-up. Multivariable analysis revealed that age, Eastern Cooperative Oncology Group Performance Status, the number of previous lines of therapy, refractoriness to the last treatment, and reduced renal function were associated with shorter TTD and overall survival (OS). The coexistence of 17p− and TP53 mutations had an independent unfavorable impact on TTD and OS. Nonstandard doses were associated with shorter TTD and advanced stage with shorter OS. The median OS postprogression and postdiscontinuation for other reasons were estimated at 12.9 (95% CI: 11.3–16.2) and 22.7 months (95% CI: 20.2–28.3), respectively. This large real-world study shows that ibrutinib is an effective treatment for R/R CLL. Baseline patient characteristics and double-hit TP53 aberrations were associated with inferior prognosis, and discontinuation due to CLL progression portended a poor outcome.