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| December 1, 2009 |
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eNews
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| Calendar |
• December
American Society of Hematology (ASH)
51st Annual Meeting
Dec. 5-8
Ernest N. Morial Convention Center
New Orleans, Louisiana
American Society for Cell Biology (ASCB)
49th Annual Meeting
Dec. 5-9
San Diego Convention Center
San Diego, California
2010
• January
Innovations in Solid Organ and Blood/Marrow Transplantation
OptumHealth
Jan. 25-27
Loews Miami Beach Hotel
Miami Beach, Florida
Phacilitate Cell & Gene Therapy Forum 2010
Jan. 25-27
The Grand Hyatt
Washington, D.C.
• February
Hematological Aspects of Autoimmune Diseases
European Hematology Association (EHA)
Feb. 13-15
Pullman Mandelieu Hotel
Mandelieu, France
Stem Cell Differentiation and Dedifferentiation
Keystone Symposia
Feb. 15-20
Keystone Conference Center
Keystone, Colorado
BMT Tandem Meetings
Combined ASBMT and CIBMTR annual meetings
Feb. 24-28
Rosen Shingle Creek
Orlando, Florida
Advanced Course in Basic and Clinical Immunology
Federation of Clinical Immunology Societies
Feb. 24-28
Mondrian Hotel
Scottsdale, Arizona
• March
Regenerative Medicine: Advancing Next Generation Therapies
13th Annual Hilton Head Workshop
March 10-14
Sea Pines Resort
Hilton Head Island, South Carolina
Clinical Practice Guidelines and Quality Cancer Care
National Comprehensive Cancer Network (NCCN)
March 10-14
Westin Diplomat
Hollywood, Florida
Annual Winter Symposium: Management Promoting a Healthy Relationship with the Allograft
American Society of Transplantation (AST)
March 11-14
Rancho Las Palmas
Rancho Mirage, California
Association of Community Cancer Centers
36th Annual Meeting
March 17-20
Baltimore Marriott Waterfront
Baltimore, Maryland
American Association of Tissue Banks (AATB)
14th Annual Spring Conference
March 20-23
Renaissance Hotels & Resorts
Hollywood, California
European Group for Blood and Marrow Transplantation (EBMT)
36th Annual Meeting
March 21-24
Austria Center Vienna
Vienna, Austria
• April
American Society of Pediatric Hematology/Oncology (ASPH/O)
23rd Annual Meeting
April 7-10
Fairmont Queen Elizabeth Hotel
Montreal, Quebec, Canada
Acute Leukemia Forum 2010 Advances and Controversies in the Biology and Therapy of Acute Leukemia and Myelodysplasia
Hemedicus Acute Leukemia Forum
April 9
Parc 55
San Francisco, California
American Association for Cancer Research (AACR)
101th Annual Meeting
April 17-21
Washington Convention Center
Washington, D.C.
Bioprocessing and Barriers to Clinical Applications of Stem Cell Therapies
5th Annual Wisconsin Stem Cell Symposium
April 21
BioPharmaceutical Technology Center
Madison, Wisconsin
• May
American Transplant Congress
American Society of Transplantation (AST)
May 1-5
San Diego Convention Center
San Diego, California
Immunology 2010
American Association of Immunologists (AAI)
May 7-11
Baltimore Convention Center
Baltimore, Maryland
14th Annual International Congress of Hematologic Malignancies: Focus on Leukemias, Lymphomas and Myelomas
Physicians’ Education Resource
May 17-21
Fairmont Château Whistler
Whistler, British Columbia, Canada
American Society of Gene & Cell Therapy (ASGCT)
13th Annual Meeting
May 17-22
Marriott Wardman Park Hotel
Washington, D.C.
International Society for Cellular Therapy (ISCT)
16th Annual Meeting
May 23-26
Sheraton Philadelphia City Center Hotel
Philadelphia, Pennsylvania
American Society for Apheresis (ASFA)
30th Annual Meeting
May 26-29
Sheraton New Orleans Hotel
New Orleans, Louisiana
• June
8th Annual International Umbilical Cord Blood Transplantation Symposium
Cord Blood Forum
June 3-5
Hyatt Regency San Francisco at Embarcadero Center
San Francisco, California
American Society of Clinical Oncology (ASCO)
46th Annual Meeting
June 4-8
McCormick Place
Chicago, Illinois
European Hematology Association (EHA)
15th Congress
June 10-13
The Gran Via Conference Center
Barcelona, Spain
International Society for Stem Cell Research (ISSCR)
8th Annual Meeting
June 16-19
Moscone Center
San Francisco, California
FOCIS 2010
Federation of Clinical Immunology Societies (FOCIS)
June 24-28
Boston Marriott Copley Place
Boston, Massachusetts
• July
UK National Stem Cell Network (UKNSCN)
Annual Science Meeting
July 12-14
University of Nottingham, East Midlands Conference Center
Nottingham, England, United Kingdom
Cryo 2010
Society for Cryobiology
47th Annual Meeting
July 17-20
Bristol Marriott Royal Hotel
Bristol, England, United Kingdom
• August
Canadian Society of Transplantation (CST)
Annual Scientific Conference
Aug. 13-14
Vancouver Congress Centre
Vancouver, British Columbia, Canada
• September
ISCT Europe Regional Meeting
International Society for Cellular Therapy (ISCT)
Sept. 11-14
Best Western Hotel Villa Carlotta
Belgirate, Italy
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| Top
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New matching method improves cord blood outcomes
Matching noninherited maternal antigens (NIMA) during cord blood transplantation improves tolerance and survival rates. According to a report in the Nov. 24 issue of the Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences, patients receiving NIMA-matched cord blood were 40 percent less likely to have died within three years after the transplant than were patients receiving blood with no match. 
Genetic difference found in stem cells derived from adult cells
Induced pluripotent stem cells are different from the adult stem cells from which they were derived in that the two have distinct epigenetic signatures. According to a report in the advance online edition of Nature Genetics, the cells differ in what gets copied when the cell divides, despite the fact that those differences are not part of the DNA sequence.
Bone marrow stem cells improve survival in heart patients
Using bone marrow stem cell transplants during coronary bypass surgery provides long-term survival for patients. According to research presented at the annual meeting of the American Heart Association, long-term survival for these patients was up to five years, with no sustained or adverse tissue changes.
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 A Word from President Claudio Anasetti, MD
1. A referring physician asks for the latest information about stem cell transplant outcomes for multiple myeloma. He receives from the transplant physician a printout of an evidence-based review from the ASBMT Web site.
2. An insurance company denies reimbursement for a stem cell transplant based on outdated information and old data. The patient, her clinician and a BMT center administrator prevail in an appeal that is supported by an evidence-based review.
3. The medical director of a managed care organization has been assigned responsibility to develop a technology assessment of a stem cell transplant procedure. Browsing the Internet, she comes across an evidence-based review and is relieved to learn that most of her work already has been done.
4. A legislator who chairs a health subcommittee is evaluating whether to intervene on a regulatory decision concerning off-label use of a cancer therapy medication. Patient advocates, armed with an evidence-based review, meet and review the issues with the lawmaker’s legislative assistant.
5. A federal health finance agency is updating cancer treatment reimbursement policies. Representatives of several BMT centers, patient advocacy groups and the ASBMT testify at a hearing and submit a position statement that is supported by an evidence-based review.
6. A cancer patient is inundated with information about treatment alternatives for a blood disease and is anxious about the appropriateness of stem cell transplantation. He’s reassured by a brochure from his physician that presents information based on data in an evidence-based review.
7. A clinical investigator is planning a trial to address a question about cellular therapy for follicular lymphoma. To help justify the proposed trial, she submits a comprehensive needs assessment that includes an evidence-based review.
8. A consumer media reporter is analyzing new therapies for a frequently fatal disease and is particularly interested in the role of stem cell transplantation. A phone interview with a highly regarded clinician is augmented by an evidence-based review that the clinician e-mails to the reporter.
Over the past nine years, ASBMT has coordinated the development and publication of comprehensive evidence-based reviews of indications for hematopoietic stem cell transplantation. You can find them by clicking “Guidelines, Policy Statements & Reviews” on the home page of our Web site. The National Marrow Donor Program has helped with major funding for the development of the reviews.
Each review requires an exhaustive (and expensive) effort that takes more than a year to complete. The process is overseen by an expert panel that includes transplant physicians, referring physicians, other disease experts, and representatives of third-party payers and patients. There also is a schedule for methodical update of past reviews.
Sometimes when a new review appears, transplant physicians have been known to furrow an eyebrow, thinking “gosh, I know all this stuff.” A review may in fact present some information of practical use to the transplant clinician, but the primary audiences are outside of our transplant community – especially those who are in positions to determine or influence public policy about blood and marrow transplants.
I’ll confess that I don’t know firsthand each of the eight scenarios that are described above, but I can tell of one important use of the most recently published review of BMT for myelodysplastic syndromes. It was a key document submitted with our request several weeks ago to the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS) for a national coverage determination for MDS.
CMS is considering the petition and is now seeking public comment. Providing support is easy and can be done online. If you haven’t already submitted yours, please do before the Dec. 10 deadline.
– Claudio
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| Clinical Research |
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Two cord blood units reduce risk of leukemia recurrence
In patients with acute leukemia who receive two units of umbilical cord blood, risk of the disease returning is significantly reduced. According to a report in the Nov. 5 issue of Blood, the likelihood of leukemia recurrence in patients in first or second remission was 19 percent for those receiving two units, compared with 34 percent for those receiving one.
Genetic cell modification may treat Hurler’s syndrome
Genetically modifying hematopoietic stem cells to influence developing red blood cells to produce a critical lysosomal enzyme prevents or reduces organ and central nervous system damage in mice with Hurler’s syndrome. According to a report in the Nov. 24 issue of the Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences, this approach to gene therapy carries considerably less risk of stimulating cancer genes and reduces the need to find a matched bone marrow donor.
Therapy with radiolabeled antibody treats leukemia
Researchers have used a combination of low-intensity chemotherapy, a radiolabeled antibody, and a stem cell transplant to treat patients with leukemia and pre-leukemia. According to a report in the advance online edition of Blood, the radiolabeled antibody delivered a targeted dose of radiation, and the result in all 58 patients was remission.
Immune system cells protect patients with Epstein-Barr
Therapy using cytotoxic lymphocytes that are specific for Epstein-Barr virus can protect immune-suppressed bone marrow transplant recipients against lymph system disease and cancers that arise from the viral infection. According to a report in the Nov. 26 issue of Blood, these cells remain in the body for up to nine years, providing long-term protection.
Drug kills resistant leukemia cells
A drug called PBOX-15 can destroy cancerous cells in adult patients with a poor prognosis for whom other therapies have failed. According to a report in the Nov. 1 issue of Cancer Research, the drug attacked and broke down the skeleton of leukemia cells in the laboratory.
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| Biopharmaceutical News |
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Anemia drugs may cause thromboembolism in cancer patients
Erythropoiesis-stimulating agents (ESA) such as Procrit and Aranesp increase the risk of venous thromboembolism, according to a report in the advance online edition of the Journal of the National Cancer Institute. Researchers collected data on more than 56,000 cancer patients and determined that 14.3 percent of patients receiving ESAs developed thromboembolism, compared with 9.8 percent of those who did not receive ESAs.
Mesoblast reports success in patients receiving patented cells
Mesoblast Limited has achieved successful results from the first 18 patients who received a bone marrow transplant using umbilical cord blood expanded by the company’s patented allogeneic mesenchymal precursor cells. These proprietary cells expanded hematopoietic stem cells in umbilical cord blood by approximately 40-fold.
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| Association
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Dec. 10 deadline for comments on MDS coverage
The deadline is Dec. 10 for submitting comments to the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS) about a proposal to reimburse allogeneic stem cell transplantation for myelodysplastic syndromes (MDS). Information and opinions from health professionals, patients and their families are a vital part of the government’s decision-making process. CMS received 75 comments as of Nov. 30.
1,300 new BMT physicians needed by 2020
At least 1,300 new clinicians will have to be recruited to the BMT field over the next 10 years to meet the expected patient care demand, according to a commentary in this month’s Biology of Blood and Marrow Transplantation. The authors explore “Impending Challenges in the Hematopoietic Stem Cell Transplantation Physician Workforce.”
Statement on BMT in Older Patients
Also in this month’s issue of Biology of Blood and Marrow Transplantation is an ASBMT policy statement on “Blood Stem Cell Transplantation in Older Patients.” The statement reviews trends and suggests research priorities to help close knowledge gaps about hematopoietic stem cell transplantation in older patients.
Members eager to have clinical guidelines
When members were asked in a survey whether ASBMT should develop clinical guidelines for patient care, an overwhelming 94% agreed. The highest priority was given to clinical guidelines for the management of acute and chronic graft-versus-host disease.
Recruitment will again be theme for ASH exhibits
ASBMT and six other cell therapy organizations are collaborating again this year on a recruitment theme in their exhibit booths at the American Society of Hematology (ASH) annual meeting. CIBMTR, NMDP, ISCT, FACT, AABB and NetCord will provide information about careers in hematopoietic cell transplantation, emphasizing the growth of the field, its opportunities and the resources that are available to young clinicians and investigators. A joint advance mailing to ASH pre-registrants has invited visitors to the booths, which will be in a single area of the exhibit hall.
Updated transplant guidelines now available
The 2009 NMDP-ASBMT “Recommended Timing for Transplant Consultation” and “Recommended Post-Transplant Care” are now available online and can also be obtained in print or on a USB drive at the National Marrow Donor Program booth #142 at the ASH Annual Meeting.
Stanley Riddell to present E. Donnall Thomas Lecture
Stanley R. Riddell, MD, of the Fred Hutchinson Cancer Research Center and the University of Washington School of Medicine will present the E. Donnall Thomas Lecture at the 2010 BMT Tandem Meetings in Orlando. His presentation, “Therapeutic T-cells: The End of the Long Beginning,” will be on Friday, Feb. 26.
Four ‘meet the professor’ lunches at BMT Tandem Meetings
Fellows and junior faculty attending the 2010 BMT Tandem Meetings, Feb. 24-28 in Orlando, will have twice the opportunities for informal discussions with experts in BMT patient management. The number of “Meet the Professor” lunches has been doubled to four.
Travel grants available for hem/onc fellows
ASBMT members can nominate hematology and oncology fellows for travel grants to attend the 2010 BMT Tandem Meetings in Orlando. Ten grants of $1,000 each will be awarded first-come, first-served – part of a program to introduce young clinicians and investigators to the field of hematopoietic cell transplantation.
Cord blood ‘state of the science’ lecture is online
The state of the science of umbilical cord blood transplantation is the newest course offering in the series of ASBMT Online Seminars. John Wagner, MD, of the University of Minnesota explains how cord blood is now a treatment of choice for pediatric acute leukemia, and applicable for other diseases in children and adults. Print out a certificate for an hour of Category 1 CME credit upon completion of the online program.
New cord blood standards arriving in January
The fourth edition of the NetCord-FACT Cord Blood Standards will be published in January, along with related accreditation manual, inspection checklist, document checklist and “crosswalk” to the third edition. Banks applying for or renewing accreditation under the third edition must submit checklists by Dec. 31 and be inspected before the new standards take effect on March 31.
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