| |
| March 2, 2009 |
| |
If
you are unable to view
these articles or access the
links,
please visit the ASBMT
Web Site at www.asbmt.org
to read this
issue. To be
removed from this distribution
list, please see
instructions at
bottom. |
| |
 |
Top
Stories |
| |
|
|
Clinical
Research |
| |
|
|
Biopharmaceutical News |
| |
|
|
Association
News |
| |
|
|
Calendar |
| |
|
|
Job &
Fellowship Connections |
| |
|
|
Monthly Journal |
| |
|
|
eNews
Archives |
|
|
| |
 |
| |
 |
|
|
|
| Calendar |
• March
Emergence to Convergence: Management of High Risk Donors and Recipients
American Society of Transplantation (AST)
22nd Annual Winter Symposium
March 4-5
Fairmont Banff Springs
Banff, Alberta, Canada
Regenerative Medicine: Advancing Next Generation Therapies
13th Annual Hilton Head Workshop
March 5-6
Sea Pines Resort
Hilton Head Island, South Carolina
Canadian Society of Transplantation (CST)
Annual Scientific Meeting
March 5-8
Fairmont Banff Springs
Banff, Alberta, Canada
Clinical Practice Guidelines and Quality Cancer Care
National Comprehensive Cancer Network (NCCN)
March 11-15
Westin Diplomat
Hollywood, Florida
Evolving Standards of Care for Hematologic Malignancies: Individualized Care Using Targeted Therapies and Stem Cell Transplantation
M.D. Anderson Cancer Center
March 13-14
Anderson Conference Hall
Houston, Texas
Association of Community Cancer Centers
35th Annual Meeting
March 18-21
Gaylord National Resort and Convention Center
Washington, D.C.
Acute Leukemia Forum 2009
Hemedicus
March 20
Parc 55 Hotel
San Francisco, California
Targeted Cancer Therapies
Keystone Symposia
March 27-April 1
Whistler Conference Centre
Whistler, British Columbia, Canada
American Association of Tissue Banks (AATB)
12th Annual Spring Conference
March 29-31
Disney World Swan & Dolphin
Lake Buena Vista, Florida
European Group for Blood and Marrow Transplantation (EBMT)
35th Annual Meeting
March 29-April 1
Göteborg Convention Centre
Göteborg, Sweden
• April
Leukemic and Cancer Stem Cells: Common and Distinct Features
European Hematology Association (EHA) and European School of Hematology (ESH)
April 3-5
Pullman Cannes Mandelieu Hotel
Mandelieu, France
UK National Stem Cell Network (UKNSCN)
Annual Science Meeting
April 6-8
University of Oxford
Oxford, England, United Kingdom
American Association for Cancer Research (AACR)
100th Annual Meeting
April 18-22
Colorado Convention Center
Denver, Colorado
Stem Cell Niche Interactions
Keystone Symposia
April 21-26
Fairmont Chateau Whistler
Whistler, British Columbia, Canada
American Society of Pediatric Hematology/Oncology (ASPH/O)
22nd Annual Meeting
April 22-25
Hilton San Diego Bayfront
San Diego, California
Converging Concepts in Cell Therapy
National Heart Lung and Blood Institute (NHLBI) and Production Assistance for Cellular Therapies (PACT) Workshop
April 23-24
NIH Campus/Natcher Auditorium
Bethesda, Maryland
• May
International Society for Cellular Therapy (ISCT)
15th Annual Meeting
May 3-6
Sheraton San Diego Hotel
San Diego, California
Focus on Lymphoid Malignancies
European Hematology Association (EHA) and European School of Hematology (ESH)
May 15-17
Nordic Hotel Forum
Tallinn, Estonia
American Society for Apheresis (ASFA)
30th Annual Meeting
May 20-23
Sheraton San Diego Hotel
San Diego, California
2nd International Congress on Leukemia-Lymphoma-Myeloma
Turkish Society of Hematology
May 21-24
WOW Convention Center
Istanbul, Turkey
American Society of Gene Therapy (ASGT)
12th Annual Meeting
May 27-30
San Diego Convention Center
San Diego, California
American Society of Clinical Oncology (ASCO)
45th Annual Meeting
May 29-June 2
Orange County Convention Center
Orlando, Florida
American Transplant Congress
American Society of Transplantation (AST)
May 30-June 3
John B. Hynes Veteran Convention Center
Boston, Massachusetts
• June
European Hematology Association (EHA)
14th Congress
June 4-7
International Congress Center Berlin
Berlin, Germany
7th Annual International Umbilical Cord Blood Transplantation Symposium
Cord Blood Forum
June 5-6
Los Angeles Airport Marriott
Los Angeles, California
FOCIS 2009
Federation of Clinical Immunology Societies (FOCIS)
June 11-14
San Francisco Marriott
San Francisco, California
2009 Pan Pacific Lymphoma Conference
University of Nebraska Medical Center
June 22-26
Fairmont Orchid
Kohala Coast, Big Island, Hawaii
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
| |
| Top
Stories |
| |
|
Clinical trials of blood substitute to begin
Researchers in France are preparing to conduct the first human clinical trials of red blood cells harvested from stem cells. This feasibility study will examine the life span of the cells in humans to see how it compares with the 120-day life span of a normal red blood cell and the 30-day life span of a transfused donor blood cell. 
Healthcare budget doubles NIH cancer research funding
President Obama's new budget seeks $634 billion over 10 years for health care. Among the highlights, the budget would double cancer research at the National Institutes of Health to $6 billion – on top of $10 billion given to the NIH in the huge emergency stimulus package signed by Obama in mid-February.
Stem cells successfully used to treat limb ischemia
Doctors in India are using adult stem cells taken from patients’ bone marrow to trigger growth of new blood vessels in limbs. Since December 2007, researchers have used this procedure in 34 patients, all of whom were suffering from limb ischemia.
Gene therapy reduces viral count in HIV patients
Clinical trials in humans have shown that treatment with blood stem cells containing a gene that encodes an RNA enzyme blocks HIV from replicating once it infects a cell. According to a report in the online edition of Nature Medicine, the viral count at 100 weeks was significantly lower in the half of 74 patients given the stem cells compared with those given a harmless look-alike substance. |
| |
 A Word from President Claudio Anasetti, MD
It’s always good to see Paul, a retired airline pilot, when he returns to the clinic for follow up.
He and his wife, Louise, live in Miami. He had been enjoying life and golf, but about four years ago, at age 65, his swing became wobbly, his legs tired and his breathing difficult.
Tests revealed that myelodysplastic syndrome was knocking down his red cell production and not letting enough oxygen reach his organs. Hope rose as 5-azacytidine became available to him.
I first met Paul in a consultation about an allograft as a therapeutic option. Paul was a fit man, healthy except for the fatal blood disorder. He had no siblings for transplant, but we found the perfect match in a young man unrelated to him.
Meanwhile, his blood grew thinner and his MDS evolved to acute myeloid leukemia. Ironically, as his disease prognosis deteriorated, his economic prospects improved. That’s because Medicare, which offers uncertain benefits for allografts for MDS, does provide coverage for overt leukemia.
Every year, about 2,500 Americans ages 65 to 74 are diagnosed with MDS, and just about half survive a year. New drugs have improved their quality of life and slightly extended life expectancy, but an allogeneic stem cell transplant is the only hope for long-term survival. Once MDS evolves to AML in this age group, induction chemotherapy is effective in fewer than 40 percent of patients. Frequently they cannot even proceed to allograft because of poor general health or co-morbidity. Very few survive long term.
Recent progress with stem cell transplants was reported by Drs. Brian McClune and Daniel Weisdorf and their Center for International Blood and Marrow Transplant Research (CIBMTR) collaborators at the ASH Annual Meeting in December in San Francisco. Among 55 patients ages 65 to 74 who were transplanted before MDS evolved to AML, 30 percent were alive and in remission three years after treatment. Given reduced-intensity conditioning regimens, these older patients do not appear to be predisposed to bad outcomes.
Two weeks ago, a small delegation from ASBMT and the National Marrow Donor Program (NMDP) presented the MDS-AML paradox to staff at the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS). Our team – Vice President Dan Weisdorf, Reimbursement Committee Chair Jim Gajewski and me, along with Michael Boo of the NMDP – had a very satisfactory meeting with Drs. Marcel Salive and Steven Phurrough and other CMS staff in their offices on the outskirts of Baltimore. We presented the CIBMTR data and asked whether Medicare could provide coverage benefits for allogeneic transplantation for MDS patients before their disease evolved to AML.
The reception was very cordial, and they provided advice on how to proceed. What needs to follow is a formal request to CMS for a determination of national coverage that provides access to stem cell transplant earlier in the course of the disease.
I delight in every follow-up visit with Paul. He tells me that his golf swing is getting better and better. Earlier intervention with transplants could raise the prospects for many of the 2,500 others in his age group who are diagnosed with MDS each year.
– Claudio
|
|
| |
| Clinical Research |
| |
Stem cell therapy treats Crohn’s disease
Doctors in Spain are using stem cell therapy to treat Crohn's disease. The treatment procedure is based on an autologous bone marrow transplant, and 80 percent of transplant patients are in total remission in an average follow-up period of six years.
Parkinson’s clinical trial shows patient improvement
Results from the world’s first clinical trial using autologous neural stem cells to treat Parkinson’s disease are favorable. According to a report in the February issue of Bentham Open Stem Cell Journal, for the five years following the procedure patients’ motor scales improved by more than 80 percent for at least 36 months.
Clinical trial to begin on stem cell treatment for stroke
Researchers at the University of Texas Medical School, Houston, are beginning a Phase I clinical trial on the use of stem cells to treat stroke. The study, funded through a pilot grant from the National Institutes of Health, will involve 10 patients who have just suffered a stroke and are being treated in the Emergency Center at Memorial Hermann – Texas Medical Center.
Interferon-alpha awakens stem cells from dormancy
Interferon-alpha awakens bone marrow stem cells from dormancy, according to a report in the online edition of Nature. Dormancy helps cells escape attack by cytotoxins, which only act on dividing cells. This finding may help researchers awaken other stem cells, such as tumor stem cells, breaking their resistance to anti-cancer drugs.
|
| |
| Association
News |
| |
Claudio Anasetti installed as ASBMT President
Claudio Anasetti, MD, professor of oncology and medicine and chair of the Blood and Marrow Transplant Department at the University of South Florida in Tampa, has been installed as ASBMT president. Daniel Weisdorf, MD, professor of medicine at the University of Minnesota in Minneapolis, is the newly elected vice president, to become president in 2011.
BMT Tandem Meetings attendance nears 2,500
Registration for the BMT Tandem Meetings in Tampa was 2,457 – just short of last year’s record 2,501 in San Diego. Registrants came from 45 countries – a new record."
Claim CME online by March 31 for the Tampa sessions
March 31 is the deadline for claiming continuing medical education (CME) credit for sessions attended at the 2009 BMT Tandem Meetings. Evaluations and CME credit applications are online. A certificate can be printed at the conclusion of the online session.
BMT Tandem Meetings abstracts are searchable online
Abstracts accepted for the 2009 BMT Tandem Meetings were published in the February issue of Biology of Blood and Marrow Transplantation (Vol. 15, No. 2, Supplement) and also are indexed and accessible online.
Six abstracts chosen as best at Tandem meetings
A total 470 abstracts submitted by investigators in 29 countries were accepted for the 2009 BMT Tandem Meetings. Six of the abstracts were selected for awards by the abstract review committees.
If you missed the Medical Directors Conference
The next best thing to attending the Medical Directors Conference last month at the BMT Tandem Meetings is to view the conference online. The conference provided an update on the collection, analysis and reporting of transplant center-specific treatment outcomes, including the status of the Stem Cell Transplant Outcomes Database (SCTOD).
FDA update also can be viewed online
The Regulatory Affairs Session at last month’s BMT Tandem Meetings can be viewed online. Dr. Celia Witten, director of the FDA Office of Cellular, Tissue and Gene Therapy, speaks about new regulations, workshops, advisory committee meetings and guidances, including the upcoming cord blood regulations.
Lifetime Achievement Award presented to Georgia Vogelsang
The 2009 recipient of the ASBMT Lifetime Achievement Award is Georgia Vogelsang, MD, of Johns Hopkins University in Baltimore. Dr. Vogelsang was recognized for her trailblazing work in chronic GVHD and also for her dedication to mentorship and collaborative research. The award, presented at the President’s Dinner at the BMT Tandem Meetings, is supported by Pfizer Inc.
Two new investigators win BBMT editorial awards
Two medical scientists are the recipients of editorial awards for new investigators for their articles published this past year in Biology of Blood and Marrow Transplantation.
Pulmonary complications after transplant
Mortality associated with bronchiolitis obliterans syndrome (BOS) after transplantation can be reduced with early detection and aggressive therapy. Jason Chien, MD, MS, of the Fred Hutchinson Cancer Research Center, addresses “HCT Outcomes from a Pulmonary and Critical Care Perspective” in the newest course offering in ASBMT Online Seminars. Print out a certificate for an hour of Category 1 CME credit upon completion of the program and its evaluation.
Slide presentation summarizes evidence-based reviews
A PowerPoint presentation on evidence-based reviews of stem cell transplantation for a variety of diseases has been updated and posted on the ASBMT Web site. It can be viewed online or downloaded for presentations to personnel managers, employee risk managers and health plan purchasers and administrators.
April 1 deadline for clinical research training course
The ASBMT Clinical Research Training Course for fellows-in-training and junior faculty is returning this year to Park City, Utah. Applications are being accepted through April 1 for the course, which will be held July 15-20.
Nuclear terrorism preparation and response
A conference on “Nuclear Terrorism: Preparedness and Response for Hematology/Oncology Centers” will be held May 18 in Bethesda, Md. The conference is sponsored by the Radiation Injury Treatment Network (RITN), a cooperative effort of ASBMT and the National Marrow Donor Program.
Review examines bone marrow failure in children
The evolution and current status of bone marrow transplantation in children is reviewed in the March issue of Biology of Blood and Marrow Transplantation. Drs. Kasiani Myers and Stella Davies survey a broad group of diseases of varying etiologies in which hematopoiesis is abnormal or completely arrested in one or more cell lines.
|
| |
|
