BMT Tandem Meetings
Feb. 13-17, 2008
San Diego, California

Reaction to embryo-free stem cell research muted
Despite the announced success in creating embryo-like human stem cells without the use of embryos, biotech and pharmaceutical companies are not expected to leap toward the new research findings. Many cite concern about the time it could take to perfect meaningful treatments, as well as difficulties in getting the FDA to approve a separate treatment for each patient.

AMA adopts ethical guidelines for cord blood donation
The American Medical Association has adopted new ethical guidelines regarding how physicians should talk to their pregnant patients about donating their babies’ umbilical cord blood. The new guidelines say doctors should obtain patient consent before the mother goes into labor, disclose any ties they have to a cord blood bank, and never accept fees for a referral to a cord bank.

Canada needs public umbilical cord blood bank
Establishing a national umbilical cord blood bank in Canada could save the lives of 50 or more people each year, says John Doyle, MD, head of the Blood and Marrow Transplant Program at the Hospital for Sick Children. Plans are under way to establish such a bank as early as next year, at an estimated cost of about $5 million to set up and $2 million a year to operate.

Private information compromised when mobile device lost
Private information on about 1,200 patients enrolled in a transplant program operated by Clarian Health was on a mobile device that was misplaced by a transplant coordinator. Data on the device, which has not been found, includes names, Social Security numbers, addresses and diagnosis information.

 Immune system can stop cancer without killing the tumor
The immune system can halt the growth of a cancerous tumor without killing the cancer. According to a report in the advance online edition of Nature, equilibrium between the cancer and the immune system both decreases the cancer's drive to replicate and kills some of the cancerous cells, but not quickly enough to eliminate or shrink the tumor.

 Bone marrow transplant may cause secondary cancers
Patients who have undergone a bone marrow transplant can suffer from secondary cancers. According to Australian researchers, cancer-stimulating cells may travel from the bone marrow and help tumors grow in other parts of the body.

 Stem cells used to treat severe skin disease
U.S. medical researchers have performed the first bone marrow and cord blood transplant to treat recessive dystrophic epidermolysis bullosa. Researchers determined which adult human stem cells would give rise to the development of type VII collagen, which is lacking in patients with the disease, and an 18-month-old boy was given a transplant from a perfectly matched sibling.

 Marrow transplants could treat MS and arthritis
Bone marrow transplants may one day be used to treat common immune system disorders, such as multiple sclerosis and arthritis. According to a study in the Nov. 23 issue of Science, injecting mice with antibodies that latch on to specific proteins on the surface of blood-forming stem cells destroyed the cells. Blood-forming stem cells transplanted into the mice then were able to set up a new blood and immune system.

  Celgene Corp. to purchase Pharmion Corp.
Celgene Corp., a maker of thalidomide-based drugs for blood cancer, is purchasing Pharmion Corp., which makes Vidaza to treat myelodysplastic syndrome. The transaction is expected to be completed in the second quarter of 2008.

 Transplant drug associated with miscarriage, birth defects
Roche Holding AG’s Cellcept drug, used for patients undergoing organ transplants, has been associated with increased risk of miscarriage and birth defects. A warning has been added to the existing black-box warnings on the drug.

  Marrow harvesting system earns FDA marketing approval
StemCor Systems, Inc., a medical device company, has received clearance from the FDA to market its MarrowMiner for the harvest of bone marrow.

  Transplant support drug to proceed to clinical trial
Athersys Inc. has received FDA approval to proceed to a Phase I clinical trial of MultiStem to support bone marrow transplantation. MultiStem cells are proprietary adult stem cells derived from bone marrow, which have the demonstrated ability to form a wide range of cell types.

  Manufacturer to resubmit OrBec to FDA
Dor BioPharma has begun a new Phase III clinical trial of OrBec in an effort to prove that the drug, when given with a bone marrow transplant, can prevent graft-versus-host disease in the gastrointestinal tract. FDA rejected the drug last month because of a statistical issue with the research.

  CIBMTR launches new data collection system
The FormsNet 2.0™ electronic data collection system is being introduced today by the Center for International Blood and Marrow Transplant Research. The new system will be used to collect information on all aspects of allogeneic and autologous transplants, including research data and treatment outcomes for the Stem Cell Therapeutics Outcomes Database (SCTOD).

  I.T. Summit will focus on required reporting of outcomes
A national conference will help transplant centers comply with new federal requirements for reporting outcomes of allogeneic stem cell transplants. The conference, Jan. 18-19 in Minneapolis, is designed specifically for transplant center information technology personnel, data managers and administrators.

  BBMT may be referenced for off-label therapies
Biology of Blood and Marrow Transplantation has been added to the list of scientific journals that Medicare recognizes for determining coverage for off-label therapies.

  Exhibit booth at ASH will focus on referring physicians
A new ASBMT exhibit booth will reach out to referring physicians and others outside the BMT community at the American Society of Hematology annual meeting this weekend in Atlanta. The new exhibit, along with those of five other BMT-related organizations all focusing on the referring physician, will be adjacent to one another, rather than scattered across several aisles.

  ASH attendees to get update on status of BMT
A report on the Blood and Marrow Transplant Clinical Trials Network (BMT CTN) 2007 State of the Science Symposium, held last June in Ann Arbor, Mich., will be presented in an ASH symposium on Friday this week in Atlanta. Sponsored by the Medical College of Wisconsin and the National Marrow Donor Program, the symposium will be from 7 a.m. to 11 a.m. in the Sidney Marcus Auditorium of the Georgia World Congress Center.

  Accurate billing urged for cell processing codes
Beginning in January, Medicare and Medicaid will begin recognizing the CPT codes for hematopoietic stem cell processing. It will be important for transplant centers and laboratories to accurately bill for these procedures, ASBMT officials say.

  Web site is resource for emergency radiation incidents
A Web site for helping BMT physicians respond to radiation incidents has been created by the Radiation Injury Treatment Network (RITN), a joint program of the ASBMT and the National Marrow Donor Program. It provides guidelines and protocols for comprehensive evaluation and treatment of victims of radiation exposure or other marrow-toxic injuries.

  Survivorship symposium available on DVD
The Celebrating a Second Chance at Life Survivorship Symposium, sponsored by the BMT InfoNet and held last April in Oakbrook, Ill., is now available on DVD.

  Gene therapy reviewed in BBMT
A review of gene therapy with hematopoietic cell transplantation for genetic and acquired disorders is presented in this month’s issue of Biology of Blood and Marrow Transplantation.

  Webcast will address HLA and disease associations
“HLA and Disease Associations: An Update” is an online CME presentation of methods for evaluating genetic effects in disease susceptibility and resistance, including issues related to testing of HLA and genetic polymorphisms and the biostatistical methods used for analysis of different sample types. The presentation by Marcelo Aníbal Fernández-Viña, PhD, of M.D. Anderson Cancer Center will be at 3 p.m. Eastern on Dec 4. Register online.

  ASBMT membership for trainees
Postdoctoral fellows and physicians-in-training for blood and marrow transplantation are eligible for free membership in the American Society for Blood and Marrow Transplantation. Annual dues are waived for new trainees who apply for membership in the Society. The program is made possible again this year by a grant from PDL BioPharma, Inc.

  Take this month’s Clinical Challenge
A 59-year-old man with MDS, a candidate for transplant, has two siblings. Decide what you would do in this month’s Clinical Challenge in the left-hand column above.