ASH: American Society of Hematology

A secondary analysis presented at the 59th Annual Meeting of the American Society of Hematology found that all individual symptoms of myeloproliferative neoplasms correlate with quality of life (QoL), and having either 1 severe symptom or having multiple symptoms of moderate intensity was meaningfully correlated with QoL reduction.

Acute myeloid leukemia treatment episodes such as high-intensity chemotherapy, low-intensity chemotherapy, hematopoietic stem cell transplant, and relapsed-refractory patient episodes pose a significant substantial burden, according to an analysis presented at the 59th Annual Meeting of the American Society of Hematology in Atlanta, Georgia.

Patients with AL amyloidosis from lower socioeconomic status groups, defined in terms of education or employment, conveyed lower health-related quality of life compared to patients with more years of education and/or professional/managerial positions, according to an abstract presented at the 59th Annual Meeting of the American Society of Hematology.

An analysis presented at the 59th Annual Meeting of the American Society of Hematology showed that against a 3-year horizon, ibrutinib succeeds in overall survival (OS) and progression free suvrvival (PFS) over hematopoetic stem-cell transplantation (HSCT) in the treatment of patients with relapsed/refractory chronic lymphocytic leukemia with 17p deletion. Against a lifetime horizon, ibrutinib still proved to be superior in OS and PFS over HSCT, but is no longer cost saving as treatment costs continue.

Representatives from the Beat acute myeloid leukemia (AML) and National Cancer Institute-Molecular Analysis for Therapy Choice (NCI-MATCH), which incorporate genomic profiling to assign patients to different treatment arms, provided an insight on trial design and a progress report.

Older patients diagnosed with chronic lymphocytic leukemia (CLL) and small lymphocytic lymphoma (SLL) continue to present a favorable response to single-agent ibrutinib, at a follow-up of 29 months, in phase 3 of the RESONATE-2 trial.

Pam Mangat, MS, associate director TAPUR study at the American Society of Clinical Oncology, says that the organization has developed a number of initiatives to educate oncology practitioners on the potential of precision medicine, such as testing guidelines, online courses, a virtual tumor board, and clinical trials.

The Special Symposium on Quality at the 58th American Society of Hematology Annual Meeting & Exposition, looked at how health information technology can be utilized to improve healthcare quality, enhance patient-provider shared decision-making, and facilitate efforts in quality research.

Phase 3 results from the LyMa trial show that rituximab maintenance therapy after autologous stem cell transplant (ASCT) prolongs event-free survival, progression-free survival, and overall survival (OS) in previously untreated young patients with mantle cell lymphoma (MCL).

Innovative health IT tools like those developed by Carevive help maximize the balance between patient self-management and care team engagement, which is especially important in the era of value-based care, according to Carrie Stricker, PhD, RN, AOCN, chief clinical officer and co-founder of Carevive.

A cancer patient’s comorbid diseases have important implications for setting goals and selecting treatment, said Joseph Alvarnas, MD, of the City of Hope and editor-in-chief of Evidence-Based Oncology. Clinicians must keep comorbidities in mind as they base oncology care upon that person as an individual.

Early phase 1 results show that including the cyclin-dependent kinase 4/6 inhibitor palbociclib in the treatment of patients with mantle cell lymphoma (MCL) can help overcome resistance to ibrutinib.

Distinct genetic signatures can help distinguish responders from nonresponders of chimeric antigen receptor (CAR) T-cell treatment in patients diagnosed with chronic lymphocytic leukemia (CLL).

Surrogate endpoints, or endpoints other than overall survival, will help accelerate drug discovery and provide additional solutions for patients, according to David Fabrizio, of Foundation Medicine, Inc. However, alternate endpoints are not without their drawbacks.

Chimeric antigen receptor (CAR) T-cells have been dramatically effective in treating B-cell cancers, according to David L. Porter, MD, of the University of Pennsylvania Health System. He also identified the use of CAR T-cells for treating solid tumors as a research area that will see more development in the coming years.

Primary clinical reviewers from the FDA and 2 clinician experts provided their unique perspectives on the safety, efficacy, and potential for clinical integration of 3 recently approved agents for multiple myeloma: daratumumab (Darzalex), ixazomib (Ninlaro), and elotuzumab (Empliciti).

Results from a subgroup analysis of the phase 3 ENDEAVOR study and a phase 2 study in diffuse large B cell lymphoma patients were presented at the annual meeting of the American Society of Hematology.

Members from the American Society of Hematology (ASH)'s Choosing Wisely Task Force presented 5 recommendations on Monday, December 7, 2015, at the 57th annual meeting of ASH, in Orlando, Florida.

On the second day of the annual meeting of the American Society of Hematology, physicians got together to discuss the real-world needs of alternate payment models in hematology.

During a health outcomes session on the second day of the American Society of Hematology meeting, data presented from a study conducted at the University of Nebraska Medical Center suggested that the site of care bears a significant influence on the outcomes of patients with acute lymphoblastic leukemia.

Two posters presented at the annual meeting of the American Society of Hematology discussed patient-reported outcomes measures and quality-of-life indicators as supportive tools for treatment in individuals being treated for acute myeloid leukemia and myelodysplastic syndrome.

Presenters at an education session, titled Patient-Reported Outcomes in Hematology, addressed the importance of embracing the patient perspective in healthcare delivery, on the second day of the annual meeting of the American Society of Hematology, being held December 5-8, in Orlando, Florida.

At the annual meeting of the American Society of Hematology, providers brooded over implications of quality measures and how they will influence clinical practice in the coming years.

An early session on the first day of the annual meeting and exposition of the American Society of Hematology, being held December 5-8, 2015, in Orlando, Florida, saw presentations on the promise of newly approved hematology/oncology agents, in addition to the challenges that clinicians face in treating patients with these drugs.

Monday's oral abstract sessions on multiple myeloma at the Annual Meeting of the American Society of Hematology featured final phase 1b/2 results on the elotuzumab combination that received breakthrough therapy status from FDA earlier this year.

Pomalidomide was approved by FDA in February 2013 for multiple myeloma patients whose disease has progressed despite having received at least 2 other therapies. On Monday, researchers at the American Society of Hematology Annual Meeting presented results of phase 2 studies on combinations with the immunomodulatory drug.

On the second day of the 56th Annual Meeting of the American Society of Hematology, held December 6-9 in San Francisco, a session on tyrosine kinase inhibitors in treating chronic myelogenous leukemia included 5-year follow-up results from the DASISION trial and recognizing failure for major molecular response to guide treatment modification.

At an education session at the American Society of Hematology Annual Meeting, Christopher R. Flowers, MD, MS, discussed current thinking in the use of routine imaging for patients who have achieved a long-term complete response in non-Hodgkin lymphoma.

The plenary session on the second day of the 56th Annual Meeting of the American Society of Hematology, held December 6-9 in San Francisco, saw the best presentations, selected by the Program Committee, from among the thousands of scientific abstracts that were accepted for the meeting. These talks included a JAK/STAT-mediated thrombopoietin regulation by the Ashwell-Morell receptor, lenalidomide-mediated casein kinase regulation in myelodysplastic syndrome, and the results of the SORAML trial in acute myeloid leukemia.

A novel treatment method unveiled at the 56th Annual Meeting of the American Society of Hematology was among 4 important studies about reducing blood clots presented Sunday at the gathering in San Francisco.