Comparison of Long-Term Neurocognitive Outcomes in Young Children With Acute Lymphoblastic Leukemia Treated With Cranial Radiation or High-Dose or Very High-Dose Intravenous Methotrexate

2006 ◽  
Vol 24 (24) ◽  
pp. 3858-3864 ◽  
Author(s):  
Brenda J. Spiegler ◽  
Kimberly Kennedy ◽  
Ronnen Maze ◽  
Mark L. Greenberg ◽  
Sheila Weitzman ◽  
...  

Purpose Cranial radiation therapy (CRT) is associated with neurocognitive morbidity in survivors of childhood acute lymphoblastic leukemia (ALL). For most patients, CRT has been replaced with intensified systemic and intrathecal chemotherapy, often including methotrexate (MTX). The impact of chemotherapy-only protocols on neurocognitive outcomes is unclear, and the importance of systemic MTX dose has not been established. Patients and Methods Seventy nine of 120 eligible children diagnosed with high-risk ALL between the ages of 1.0 and 4.9 years participated in this retrospective cohort study. All patients were treated on a uniform chemotherapy protocol with one of three modalities of CNS prophylaxis, depending on their treatment era. In addition to intrathecal therapy, CNS-directed therapy consisted of CRT (18 Gy in 10 fractions) in 25 patients, high-dose intravenous (IV) MTX (8 g/m2 × 3 doses) in 32 patients and very high-dose IV MTX (33.6 g/m2 x 3 doses) in 22 patients. Participants completed tests of intelligence, academic achievement, attention, and memory. Results Neurocognitive assessment was conducted at least 5 years after diagnosis (mean, 10.5 years, standard deviation, 2.7 years). No difference was detected on any neurocognitive measure between children treated with high-dose or very high-dose IV MTX. The combined MTX groups scored near the population mean on 17/18 measures. Children treated with CRT performed more poorly than the MTX group on most measures. Conclusion Treatment strategies for young children with ALL that avoid CRT are associated with good long-term neurocognitive outcomes. In this cohort, the dose of IV MTX did not influence these outcomes.

2007 ◽  
Vol 25 (10) ◽  
pp. 1183-1189 ◽  
Author(s):  
Bassem I. Razzouk ◽  
Susan R. Rose ◽  
Suradej Hongeng ◽  
Dana Wallace ◽  
Matthew P. Smeltzer ◽  
...  

Purpose We evaluated the long-term effects of treatment on the body mass index (BMI) of children with acute lymphoblastic leukemia (ALL) or lymphoblastic lymphoma who received one of three CNS-directed therapies: intrathecal methotrexate with intravenous high-dose methotrexate (1 g/m2), intrathecal methotrexate with 18 Gy cranial radiation, or intrathecal methotrexate with 24 Gy cranial radiation. Patients and Methods Between 1979 and 1984, 456 children with newly diagnosed ALL and lymphoma were enrolled onto a single protocol at St Jude Children's Research Hospital (Memphis, TN). The heights and weights of 422 of the children were measured at diagnosis, during treatment, at the end of therapy, and approximately every 6 to 12 months thereafter. Patients who had attained their adult height at the time of analysis (n = 248) were placed in weight categories based on their BMI, BMI percentile, or weight-for-length percentile depending on age. Results The overall percentage of survivors who were overweight or obese approximated rates prevalent in the general population of the United States. Young age (< 6 years) and overweight/obesity at diagnosis were the best predictors of obesity at adult height. The rate of BMI increase did not differ significantly between children who received radiation and those who did not, nor between patients who received 18 or 24 Gy of cranial radiation. Conclusion BMI weight category at diagnosis, rather than type of CNS treatment received, predicted adult weight in long-term survivors of childhood hematologic malignancies.


2017 ◽  
Vol 35 (23) ◽  
pp. 2700-2707 ◽  
Author(s):  
Kristina K. Hardy ◽  
Leanne Embry ◽  
John A. Kairalla ◽  
Shanjun Helian ◽  
Meenakshi Devidas ◽  
...  

Purpose Survivors of childhood acute lymphoblastic leukemia (ALL) are at risk for neurocognitive deficits that are associated with treatment, individual, and environmental factors. This study examined the impact of different methotrexate (MTX) and corticosteroid treatment strategies on neurocognitive functioning in children with high-risk B-lineage ALL. Methods Participants were randomly assigned to receive high-dose MTX with leucovorin rescue or escalating dose MTX with PEG asparaginase without leucovorin rescue. Patients were also randomly assigned to corticosteroid therapy that included either dexamethasone or prednisone. A neurocognitive evaluation of intellectual functioning (IQ), working memory, and processing speed (PS) was conducted 8 to 24 months after treatment completion (n = 192). Results The method of MTX delivery and corticosteroid assignment were unrelated to differences in neurocognitive outcomes after controlling for ethnicity, race, age, gender, insurance status, and time off treatment; however, survivors who were age < 10 years at diagnosis (n = 89) had significantly lower estimated IQ ( P < .001) and PS scores ( P = .02) compared with participants age ≥ 10 years. In addition, participants who were covered by US public health insurance had estimated IQs that were significantly lower ( P < .001) than those with US private or military insurance. Conclusion Children with high-risk B-lineage ALL who were age < 10 years at diagnosis are at risk for deficits in IQ and PS in the absence of cranial radiation, regardless of MTX delivery or corticosteroid type. These data may serve as a basis for developing screening protocols to identify children who are at high risk for deficits so that early intervention can be initiated to mitigate the impact of therapy on neurocognitive outcomes.


Blood ◽  
2013 ◽  
Vol 122 (4) ◽  
pp. 550-553 ◽  
Author(s):  
Kevin R. Krull ◽  
Nan Zhang ◽  
Aimee Santucci ◽  
Deo Kumar Srivastava ◽  
Matthew J. Krasin ◽  
...  

Key Points Adult survivors of childhood ALL treated with cranial radiation demonstrate a decline in verbal intelligence during an interval of 28 years. This decline was associated with current attention problems, but not gender, radiation dose, or age at radiation exposure.


BMC Cancer ◽  
2021 ◽  
Vol 21 (1) ◽  
Author(s):  
Slawomir Kroczka ◽  
Konrad Stepien ◽  
Izabela Witek-Motyl ◽  
Kinga Kwiecinska ◽  
Eryk Kapusta ◽  
...  

Abstract Background One of the greatest success of pediatric hematology is a prominent improvement of survival in acute lymphoblastic leukemia (ALL). Therefore, special attention needs to be paid to long-term side effects of the treatment such as neurotoxicity. One of the few diagnostic methods that allow an objective assessment of sensory systems are evoked potentials (EP). Methods The analyzed group consisted of 167 ALL long-term survivors, aged 4.9–28.4 years, without auditory, visual and sensory deviations. Patients were treated with New York (NY, n = 35), previous modified Berlin-Frankfurt-Münster (pBFM, n = 47) and BFM95 (n = 85) protocols. In order to assess the impact of radiotherapy on recorded EP, a joint analysis of NY and pBFM groups was performed. The control group consisted of 35 patients, aged 6–17 years. The analyzed patients underwent a complex assessment with visual EP (VEP), somatosensory EP (SEP) and brainstem auditory EP (BAEP) in accordance with current standards. Results ALL treatment contributed to the shortening of wave I latency (1.59 vs 1.90, P = 0.003) and prolongation of I-III (2.23 vs 2.04, P = 0.004) and I-V (4.57 vs 4.24, P = 0.002) interwave latencies of BAEP. A significant effect was also noticed in P100 (106.32 vs 101.57, P < 0.001) and N135 (151.42 vs 138.22, P < 0.001) latencies of VEP and N18 amplitude (3.24 vs 4.70, P = 0.007) and P25 latency (21.32 vs 23.39, P < 0.001) of SEP. The distribution of abnormalities between protocols was similar in BAEP (NY - 68.6%, pBFM - 61.7%, BFM95–69.4%, P = 0.650), VEP (NY - 68.6%, pBFM - 42.5%, BFM95–58.3%, P = 0.053) and significantly different for SEP (NY - 62.9%, pBFM - 36.2%, BFM95–53.0%, P = 0.045). The harmful effect of radiotherapy was most clearly marked in numerous disturbances of SEP parameters. Conclusions The presented analysis indicates a high frequency of subclinical abnormalities in EP regardless of the analyzed protocol. To our knowledge current study is the largest and one of the most complex research examining the role of EP in ALL patients. The obtained results indicate the possibility of using a single, objective and non-invasive measurement of EP in ALL survivors in order to stratify the risk of developing sensory abnormalities in adulthood.


Blood ◽  
2004 ◽  
Vol 104 (11) ◽  
pp. 2733-2733
Author(s):  
Sebastian Giebel ◽  
Jerzy Holowiecki ◽  
Malgorzata Krawczyk-Kulis ◽  
Slawomira Kyrcz-Krzemien ◽  
Andrzej Hellmann ◽  
...  

Abstract The goal of the study was to evaluate long-term outcome of patients treated within 4–96 trial by the Polish Adult Leukemia Group (PALG). Sixty four patients with newly diagnosed acute lymphoblastic leukemia (ALL) (median age 26 years, range 16–58) were randomly assigned to receive chemotherapy alone (n=31) or chemotherapy and glucosylated G-CSF (lenograstim) (n=33). Both groups were well-balanced in terms of age, initial WBC, immunophenotype and bcr/abl positivity. Induction therapy consisted of epirubicin+vincristin (Epi/Vcr) on days 1, 8, 15, 22, prednisone on days 1–28, L-asparaginase 8 doses starting from day 13; consolidation treatment included twice methotrexate+etoposide (Mtx/Vep), twice high dose cytarabine and cyclophosphamide (HDAraC/Ctx), CNS irradiation and intrathecal Mtx. In T-derived ALL, additional HDAraC/Ctx was administered instead of the first Mtx/HDAraC. During induction patients received G-CSF 150 μg/m2 sc. on days 2–6, 9–13, 16–20, 23-until the neutrophil recovery &gt;1.0x109/L, starting 36 hours after Epi/Vcr, finishing 48 hours before the next dose; in consolidation - following each HDAraC/Ctx course on days 5–16. High risk patients having a donor were performed allogeneic hematopoietic cell transplantation in first complete remission, whereas those without a donor were given autologous transplant. At seven years the overall survival rate equalled 42% for G-CSF group and 24% for the controls (p=0.11). There was also a trend to higher probability of leukemia-free survival in advantage of patients receiving the cytokine (38% vs. 20%, p=0.17). The above differences might have resulted from: 1) Higher CR rate in the G-CSF group compared to the controls (94% vs. 87%), 2) Better adherence to the chemotherapy protocol (faster completion of induction-consolidation programme by 19 days, p=0.005, less dose reductions or delays), which in turn might have influenced the risk of relapse. We conclude that time sequenced G-CSF administration may improve long-term outcome of adult ALL patients although the study including larger population is required to confirm this hypothesis.


Blood ◽  
2009 ◽  
Vol 114 (22) ◽  
pp. 2303-2303
Author(s):  
Theis Terwey ◽  
Philipp Hemmati ◽  
Gero Massenkeil ◽  
Bernd Dörken ◽  
Renate Arnold

Abstract Abstract 2303 Poster Board II-280 Introduction: In acute lymphoblastic leukemia (ALL) specific clinical and biological features confer high relapse risk and inferior overall survival (OS) after treatment with conventional chemotherapy alone. The differential prognostic impact of these high risk features after treatment with allogeneic hematopoietic stem cell transplantation (HCT) has not been well studied. Patients and Methods: 79 adult ALL patients in first complete remission (CR) received allogeneic HCT at our center between 1995 and 2008. All patients were high or very high risk according to German Multicenter Study Group for Adult ALL (GMALL) criteria. Median age was 36 years (range: 17-68). Patients received high-dose conditioning consisting of 12 Gy total body irradiation ± etoposide ± cyclophosphamide (n=69, 87%) or reduced intensity conditioning (RIC) consisting of fludarabine/busulfan/ATG (n=10, 13%) and HSCT from related (n=34, 43%) or unrelated (n=45, 57%) donors. Bone marrow (n=17, 22%) or peripheral blood stem cells (n=62, 78%) were given. Graft-versus-host-disease prophylaxis was CSA/MTX for high-dose conditioning or CSA/MMF for RIC. Results: Patients were classified as high risk or very high risk due to Philadelphia chromosome-positive disease (Ph+) (n=30, 38%), leukocytosis>30/nl at diagnosis in B-ALL (n=25, 23%), late response to induction therapy in B-ALL (>week 4) (n=13, 16%), early or mature T-ALL (n=13, 16%), pro-B-ALL/t(4;11) (n=8, 10%), persistence of minimal residual disease (MRD) (>week 16) (n=8, 10%) or complex aberrant karyotype (n=6, 8%). 57 patients (72%) presented with one high risk feature, whereas 20 patients (25%) and 2 patients (3%) presented with two or three features, respectively. Currently, after a median follow-up of 56 months (7-169) 49 patients (62%) remain alive. Projected OS of the whole cohort at 1, 2 and 5 years was 78%, 70% and 55% and leukemia-free survival was 77%, 66% and 55%. Cumulative incidence of non-relapse mortality (NRM) and relapse mortality (RM) at 5 years was 23% and 18%, respectively. In multivariate Cox regression analysis, a non-significant trend for inferior OS was seen for patients with early or mature T-ALL (hazard ratio (HR): 2.03 (95%CI: 0.92-4.52), p=0.082), whereas no differential effect on OS, NRM or RM was seen for any other high risk feature (Table 1). In additional analyses, inferior OS (HR 1.81 (95%CI: 1.02-3.29), p=0.043) and increased RM (HR 2.17 (95%CI 1.16-4.05), p=0.015) was observed for patients with more than one high risk feature. Conclusions: In summary, this single center study on allogeneic HCT in high risk ALL found a negative prognostic trend for early or mature T cell immunophenotype. No differential prognostic impact on OS, NRM and RM was seen for other high risk features as defined by GMALL criteria, however this conclusion is limited by the low patient number in some of the subgroups. Overall survival for the whole cohort was 55% at 5 years, with inferior OS and higher RM being observed in patients with more than one high risk feature. Disclosures: No relevant conflicts of interest to declare.


Blood ◽  
2011 ◽  
Vol 118 (21) ◽  
pp. 1508-1508
Author(s):  
Virginie Gandemer ◽  
Sylvie Chevret ◽  
Arnaud Petit ◽  
Christiane Vermylen ◽  
Thierry Leblanc ◽  
...  

Abstract Abstract 1508 Background. The long term prognosis of ETV6/RUNX1 -positive acute lymphoblastic leukemia (ALL) remains to be evaluated with regard to the frequency of late relapses and the possible existence of a preleukemic stem cell. We performed a retrospective study based on a long-term follow up of the FRALLE 93 ALL relapses to address the issue of the outcome of ETV6/RUNX1 -positive ones. Methods. 1395 patients aged 0 to 20 years with untreated ALL (except L3) were included between 01-Jan-1993 and 31-Dec-1999. From 1995, children were systematically screened for four fusion transcripts (ETV6-RUNX1, BCR-ABL, E2A-PBX1, MLL-AF4). The FRALLE 93 study population was stratified into three groups (low-risk [LR], intermediate-risk [IR], and high-risk [HR]) based on the following prognostic factors: age, white-cell count at diagnosis, haemoglobin level, immunophenotype, karyotype, and response to steroids. Patients received an initial treatment comprised of a prednisone prophase and a triple-drug intrathecal injection. Induction treatment then included prednisone, vincristine, L-asparaginase, daunorubicin (except for the LR group), and one or two more triple-drug intrathecal injections (TIT). The main treatment features of the SR and IR protocol were induction, consolidation, delayed intensification, and maintenance (total treatment duration of 26 and 38 months for girls and boys respectively). Treatment of the HR patients consisted of induction, consolidation, two delayed intensifications, and maintenance with a total treatment time of 2 years. Depending on subgroups, CNS-directed therapy included intrathecal injections +/− high-dose methotrexate +/− cranial irradiation. Following factors influencing survival after first relapse were analyzed: age, leukocytosis, gender, duration of first remission (CR1), risk groups defined in the REZ-BFM 95/96 study, sites of relapse and post CR2 consolidation treatment (AlloSCT or not). Results. ETV6/RUNX1 status was defined for 724 patients B lineage ALL. Overall, 162 of the 713 children who reached CR1 (45 % of boys) relapsed, including 43 with t(12;21). Cumulative incidence of relapses did not differ between ETV6/RUNX1 -positive and negative ALL (p=0.94), with a 5-year estimate at 19.4% and 19.9%, respectively nor according to gender and type of relapse. Nevertheless, 11 out of 26 relapses in the ETV6/RUNX1 -positive ALL males (43%) were testicular (4 testis isolated) versus 16 out of 70 (23%) in ETV6/RUNX1 -negative ALL cases (p= 0.04). Thirty three (77%) had been stratified as LR (n=6) or IR (n=27) group and 32 displayed good early response at initial diagnosis. Thirty five (81.4%) patients were classified as S1/S2 and 8 (18.6%) as S3/S4. All but three received second line salvage therapy (37/40 were included in the COOPRALL 97) and 16 underwent an AlloSCT (6 S3/S4). Based on univariate analyses, the overall survival of ETV6-RUNX1 -positive ALL after relapse was significantly affected by the duration of the first remission with a OS that was significantly improved when relapse occurred after 36 months (5-year OS: 80.6+/−7.9% versus 34.7+/− 12.3, p=0.002). Female gender was also associated with a poor survival (p= 0.015), whereas the site of relapse (p= 0.13), age at initial diagnosis (p= 0.81), leukocytosis (p=0.42), and consolidation strategy (p=0.18) had no affect on survival. In multivariate Cox-regression analysis, only the duration of first remission remained associated with the outcome (Figure 1). Conclusions. We found a high rate of testicular relapse without any increase of other extramedullary sites and an excellent outcome for ETV6/RUNX1 -positive leukemia relapses occurring over 36 months post-diagnosis. These findings highlight the interest of a primary treatment able to cross the testicular barrier. They also support the hypothesis that ETV6/RUNX1 “late relapses” are due to a novel leukemic clone, sensitive to a novel cycle of ALL chemotherapy. Disclosures: No relevant conflicts of interest to declare.


1970 ◽  
Vol 34 (3) ◽  
pp. 90-93 ◽  
Author(s):  
A.T.M. Atikur Rahman ◽  
M.A. Mannan ◽  
Samia Sadeque

The pattern of acute and long-term neurological complications in 133 children with acute lymphoblastic leukemia (ALL) treated with two treatment protocol was reviewed. Twenty patients developed neurological complications. Nine out of 20 patients received MRC UK ALL X and the remaining 11 received MRC UK ALL XI protocol. There was no difference of neurological complications between MRC UKALL X and UK ALL XI protocol groups. The numbers of patients who developed neurological complications during induction of remission period were 11 of 133 patients (8.2%). 122 patients were observed during the maintenance period of treatment (from 6 months to 36 months). Six out of 122 patients developed neurological complications during this period. 88 patients were followed for a period of up to 6 months after the cessation of chemotherapy, i.e., in the late period. Neurological complications were found in 3 during this period. Neurological complications rate was 4 times higher in the relapsed group than in the no relapsed group (p < 0.05). Systemic chemotherapy (including vincristine, high-dose methotrexate) and intrathecal chemotherapy seem to be the most common predisposing factors.Keywords: Acute lymphoblastic leukemia; children; neurological complicationOnline: 29-1-2009DOI: 10.3329/bmrcb.v34i3.1858Bangladesh Med Res Counc Bull 2008; 34: 90-93


Sign in / Sign up

Export Citation Format

Share Document