Key clinical point: Myelodysplastic syndrome patients who responded to treatment with azacytidine showed significantly reduced peripheral blood levels of Wilms’ tumour 1 mRNA ( WT-1) compared to nonresponders.
Major finding : A total of 20 patients (63%) showed a response to azacytidine; 7 patients (22%) achieved complete response and 19 patients (59%) achieved hematologic improvement. Responders had an average peripheral blood WT-A mRNA of 2,050 copies per micrograms of RNA vs. 7,550 copies per micrograms of RNA for nonresponders ( P = 0.03).
Study details: The data come from 32 adult patients aged 31 to 85 years with myelodysplastic syndrome who were treated with azacytidine for an average of five cycles.
Disclosures: The study was supported in part by the Practical Research for Innovative Cancer Control Program from the Japan Agency for Medical Research and Development, AMED. Lead author Dr. Maeda disclosed relationships with Nippon Shinyaku and Janssen; several coauthors also disclosed relationships with multiple companies.
Source: Maeda T et al. Leukemia Res Rep. 2020 Dec 8. doi: 10.1016/j.lrr.2020.100231.