Work

Recipient Pre-HCT Telomere Length and Outcomes after Unrelated Donor HCT for Acute Leukemia

Year: 2017

Type: article

Abstract: Background: Telomeres are tandem nucleotide repeats and a protein complex located at the end of the chromosomes. They are necessary for maintaining chromosomal stability. There are limited data on the role of recipient telomere length in HCT outcomes. In this study, we evaluated the association between recipient pre-HCT telomere length and outcomes after unrelated donor HCT for patients with acute leukemia. Method: We used qPCR to measure pre-transplant leukocyte relative telomere length (RTL) in 536 acute leukemia patients who underwent 8/8 HLA-matched unrelated donor HCT between 2005 and 2012 after myeloablative conditioning regimens. Patient pre-transplant blood samples and outcome data were provided by the Center for International Blood and Marrow Transplant (CIBMTR) Research Repository. We used Kaplan-Meier and competing risk estimators to calculate survival probability and cumulative incidence, respectively. Cox proportional hazard regression was used for adjusted analyses. Results: The study included 396 AML and 140 ALL patients; median age at HCT = 41 years (range = .5-66 years), and median follow-up for survivors = 5.8 years (range = .5-10.3). In univariate analysis, recipient RTL was not significantly associated with disease-free survival (P = .18), overall survival (P = .16), relapse (P = .58) or transplant-related mortality (P = .16). Similarly, there were no significant associations between recipient RTL and acute GvHD and chronic GvHD. In multivariable analyses, recipient RTL was not associated with any of these HCT outcomes. Conclusion: Pre-HCT telomere length is not significantly associated with HCT outcomes in patients with acute leukemia.

Source: Transplantation and Cellular Therapy

DOI: 10.1016/j.bbmt.2016.12.226