prof. F. Baron

Which MAC or RIC for which AML patient?

During the the 36^th general annual meeting of the Belgian Haematology Society prof. Frédéric Baron addressed an interesting question; which conditioning regimen should be chosen for which acute myeloid leukaemia (AML) patient? As you will find out in this report, the answer to this question is not so straight forward.

Acute graft-versus-host disease: diagnosis, pathophysiology and prevention

SUMMARY

Acute graft-versus-host disease (aGVHD) remains a severe complication after allogeneic stem cell transplantation (alloHCT). It is a disregulated immune process, during which the immune cells of the donor attack the healthy tissues in the immunocompromised host. Over the past two decades, progress in understanding its pathophysiology have helped redefine aGVHD reactions and clinical presentations. Typically, the disease presents with serious inflammatory lesions mainly in the skin, gut and liver. Its severity is assessed by gathering clinical signs and dysfunctions of each organ. Despite standard prophylaxis regimens, aGVHD still occurs in approximately 30–60% of transplanted patients and remains a major cause of transplant-related morbidity and mortality. Hence, there is an urgent need for optimising preventive strategies. In this review, we give insights on how to make an accurate diagnosis and scoring assessment of aGVHD, propose a short overview of the current knowledge about its immunobiology and discuss the current and developing strategies for prevention.

(BELG J HEMATOL 2020;11(4):159–173)

O.6 Multipotent mesenchymal stromal cells for poor graft function after allogeneic hematopoietic cell transplantation – a multicenter prospective study

PP42 Th17 impact on xenogeneic graft-versus-host disease

PP43 Graft-versus-host disease (GVHD) of the central nervous system (CNS) after allogeneic hematopoietic cell transplantation (alloHCT): case report

Multiple myeloma bone disease: from mechanisms to next generation therapy

SUMMARY

Multiple myeloma bone disease is a major cause of morbidity and mortality in multiple myeloma patients and persists even in patients in remission. Multiple myeloma bone disease is caused by an uncoupling of bone remodelling, with increased osteoclast activity and decreased osteoblast activity, culminating in lytic bone destruction. Bisphosphonates are the current standard-of-care but new therapies are needed. As the molecular mechanisms controlling multiple myeloma bone disease are increasingly understood, new therapeutic targets are extensively explored in the preclinical setting and initial clinical trials with novel compounds show promising results. In this review, we provide a comprehensive overview of the biology of multiple myeloma bone disease, summarise its current clinical management and discuss preclinical and clinical data on next generation therapies.

(BELG J HEMATOL 2017;8(2):66–74)

PP71 Impact of Tofacitinib on xenogeneic graft versus host disease