Early Post-Transplant Serum Ferritin Levels as Predictive Biomarkers for Severe Acute Graft-Versus-Host Disease in Pediatric Umbilical Cord Blood Transplantation for Acute Leukemia.

BACKGROUND Allogeneic hematopoietic stem cell transplantation (allo-HSCT) using umbilical cord blood is a valuable therapy option for patients with acute leukemia (AL). Acute graft-versus-host disease (aGVHD) remains the most frequently encountered complication. This study investigated risk factors for aGVHD and assessed whether post-transplant serum ferritin (SF) within 2 weeks is a potential biomarker for aGVHD in pediatric patients with AL undergoing umbilical cord blood transplantation (UCBT). MATERIAL AND METHODS We conducted a retrospective cohort study of 71 patients with AL who underwent UCBT at the Children's Hospital of Soochow University between 2017 and 2022. We evaluated several factors related to aGVHD. Univariate and multivariate analyses were performed using the proportional subdistribution hazard regression model of Fine and Gray. Analyses of overall survival (OS) were performed using the Kaplan-Meier method, and differences were compared using log-rank tests. RESULTS Of the 71 patients, 23 (32.4%) experienced grade II-IV aGVHD, of whom 18 (25.4%) developed grade III-IV aGVHD. Patients with grade II-IV and III-IV aGVHD had worse 5-year OS (69.4±10%, p=0.01; and 60.6±11.6, P=0.007, respectively). Conditioning intensity was a risk factor for grade III-IV aGVHD (HR: 0.34, 95% CI: 0.13-0.89, P=0.027). An SF level >1650 ng/mL within 2 weeks post-transplant was associated with an increased risk of severe aGVHD (HR: 3.61, 95% CI: 1.09-11.97, P=0.036). CONCLUSIONS Post-transplant SF within 2 weeks was a potential biomarker for developing severe aGVHD. Higher levels of post-transplant SF are associated with a higher incidence of grade II-IV aGVHD and grade III-IV aGVHD.