0000000000148627
AUTHOR
Anna Candoni
Zygomycosis in Italy: A survey of FIMUA-ECMM (Federazione Italiana di Micopatologia Umana ed Animale and European Confederation of Medical Mycology)
Abstract The aims of the study were to analyze the clinical and epidemiological characteristics and treatments for patients who developed zygomycosis enrolled in Italy during the European Confederation of Medical Mycology of medical mycology survey. This prospective multicenter study was performed between 2004 and 2007 at 49 italian Departments. 60 cases of zygomycosis were enrolled: the median age was 59.5 years (range 1-87), with a prevalence of males (70%). The majority of cases were immunocompromised patients (42 cases, 70%), mainly hematological malignancies (37). Among non-immunocompromised (18 cases, 30%), the main category was represented by patients with penetrating trauma (7/18, 3…
Risk stratification for invasive fungal infections in patients with hematological malignancies: SEIFEM recommendations
Invasive fungal infections (IFIs) are an important cause of morbidity and mortality in immunocompromised patients. Patients with hematological malignancies undergoing conventional chemotherapy, autologous or allogeneic hematopoietic stem cell transplantation are considered at high risk, and Aspergillus spp. represents the most frequently isolated micro-organisms. In the last years, attention has also been focused on other rare molds (e.g., Zygomycetes, Fusarium spp.) responsible for devastating clinical manifestations. The extensive use of antifungal prophylaxis has reduced the infections from yeasts (e.g., candidemia) even though they are still associated with high mortality rates. This pa…
Systemic mastocytosis. A GIMEMA multicenter survey
Abstract To evaluate clinical and biological features, treatments and outcome of patients(pts) with Systemic Mastocytosis(SM). A retrospective study (1995–2006) about pts with SM admitted in 14 Italian hematology divisions in tertiary cares or university hospitals. 30 cases of SM were collected(median age 62 y.o.; M/F 14/16) and classified according to the WHO criteria: Mast Cell Leukemia in 14 pts, Aggressive SM in 12 and Indolent in 3; the remaining one had SM with associated clonal non-mast cell-lineage hematologic disease. Skin was the principal extramedullary organ involved (19 pts) followed by spleen(15), liver(13), and cardiovascular system(12). Molecular biology studies were perform…
Management of Venous Thromboembolism (VTE) in Patients with Acute Leukemia: Results from a Multicenter Study
Abstract Background In the last decades, evaluation of thrombotic complications secondary to acute leukemia (AL) has been poorly investigated. Only scant data are available on management and prevention of thrombosis in this setting. We performed a multicenter retrospective study with the aim to evaluate the management of venous thromboembolism (VTE) in patients with AL and to report the most commonly adopted regimens of treatment. Materials and methods Available clinical records of out and in-patients diagnosed with AL from January 2008 to June 2013 in 7 Reference Regional Hospitals were analyzed. Cases of VTE, including thrombosis in atypical sites [Retinal occlusion (RO) and Cerebral Sinu…
Management of venous thromboembolism in patients with acute leukemia at high bleeding risk: a multi-center study
In the last decades, evaluation of clinically relevant thrombotic complications in patients with acute leukemia (AL) has been poorly investigated. The authors performed a multi-center study to evaluate the management of symptomatic venous thromboembolism (VTE) in adult patients with AL. The intention was to find as clinically relevant the following: symptomatic Venous Thrombosis (VT) occurred in typical (lower limbs) and atypical (cerebral, upper limbs, abdominal, etc) sites with or without pulmonary embolism (PE). Over a population of 1461 patients with AL, 22 cases of symptomatic VTE were recorded in hospitalized patients with a mean age of 54.6 years. The absolute incidence of VTE was 1.…
Caspofungin for the treatment of candidaemia in patients with haematological malignancies
AbstractThis study was prospectively conducted in 11 haematology divisions over a 2-year period to evaluate the efficacy of caspofungin in 24 neutropenic patients with haematological malignancies (HM) and candidaemia. These patients had received chemotherapy for HM and were neutropenic (PNN < 0.5 × 109/L) for a median of 12 days (2–41) before candidaemia. The patients received caspofungin for a median duration of 12 days (range 6–26), obtaining a favourable overall response of 58%. At 30 days, 11 patients had died (46%); candidaemia was responsible for mortality in six patients (25%). These results suggest that treatment of candidaemia with caspofungin in neutropenic HM was efficacious, as …
Prevalence and Prognostic Role of IDH Mutations in Acute Myeloid Leukemia: Results of the GIMEMA AML1516 Protocol
Simple Summary IDH1/2 mutations are a common event in acute myeloid leukemia (AML) and represent a therapeutic target. We designed the GIMEMA AML1516 observational protocol to examine the prevalence of IDH1/2 mutations and the associations between IDH mutations and clinico-biological parameters in a cohort of Italian patients affected by AML. By analyzing 284 consecutive adult AML patients, we confirmed that IDH1 and IDH2 mutations are frequently detected-14% and 18%, respectively-at diagnosis. IDH1/2 mutations were significantly associated with an inferior performance status and non-complex karyotype when compared to IDH1/2-WT. With regards to the outcome, in the subset of IDH1/2-mutated p…
Bone marrow evaluation according to the PVSG and WHO criteria in 90 essential thrombocythemia (ET) patients treated with PEG interferon alpha-2b. Preliminary results
Abstract Ninety ET patients diagnosed according to the PVSG criteria were enrolled in a phase II study (sponsored by the Schering-Plough Company) designed to evaluate the efficacy, safety and tolerability of a two years treatment with PEG Interferon alpha-2 b (PEG Intron). The patients, observed in 16 Italian Centres belonging to the GIMEMA Cooperative Group and judged at high risk, had been previously treated with cytoreductive (97%) and antiplatelet (91%) drugs. At the study start the patients, 60 F and 30 M, mean age 45 years, showed splenomegaly in 22% of cases. The Hematological Response (HR: PLT&lt;500 x109/L) was observed in 64/81 (79%) and 48/55 (87%) of the patients on PEG Intr…