Azacitidine maintenance therapy for blastic plasmacytoid dendritic cell neoplasm allograft: A case report

BACKGROUND Blastic plasmacytoid dendritic cell neoplasm(BPDCN)is a rare,highly invasive malignant neoplasm.There is no universally accepted standard of care because of its rarity and the dearth of prospective research.It is still challenging for some patients to achieve persistent clinical remission or cure,despite the success of allogeneic hematopoietic stem cell transplantation(allo-HSCT),indicating that there is still a significant recurrence rate.We report a case of prevention of BPDCN allograft recurrence by azacitidine maintenance therapy and review the relevant literature.CASE SUMMARY We report a 41-year-old man with BPDCN who was admitted to hospital due to skin sclerosis for>5 mo’duration.BPDCN was diagnosed by combined clinical assessment and laboratory examinations.Following diagnosis,the patients underwent induction consolidation chemotherapy to achieve the first complete remission,followed by bridging allo-HSCT.Post-transplantation,azacitidine(75 mg/m2 for 7 d)was administered as maintenance therapy,with repeat administration every 4–6 wk and appropriate extension of the chemotherapy cycle.After 10 cycles,the patient has been disease free for 26 mo after transplantation.Regular assessments of bone marrow morphology,minimal residual disease,full donor chimerism,Epstein–Barr virus,and cytomegalovirus all yielded normal results with no abnormalities detected.CONCLUSION Azacitidine may be a safe and effective maintenance treatment for BPDCN following transplantation because there were no overt adverse events during the course of treatment.

Capecitabine maintenance therapy for XT chemotherapy-sensitive patients with metastatic triple-negative breast cancer

Objective： To investigate the efficacy and safety of capecitabine maintenance therapy（MT） after initial capecitabine plus docetaxel（XT） chemotherapy in patients with metastatic triple-negative breast cancer（m TNBC）.Methods： Fifty-five m TNBC patients treated with XT chemotherapy between May 2007 and June 2013 were retrospectively analyzed. When initial disease control was achieved by the combination chemotherapy, capecitabine was continued for 32 patients（MT）, while 23 patients remained without any treatment（nonMT）. We compared progression-free survival（PFS） and safety of both groups.Results： The median PFS of 55 patients was 8.1 months, overall median PFS time of 32 patients in the capecitabine MT group and 23 in the non-MT group was 10.1 vs. 6.7 months（P=0.032）, respectively. When compared PFS time of maintenance treatment, single-agent capecitabine prolonged PFS by 7.1 months, for non-MT patients, the PFS without any treatment was 3.1 months, and this between-group difference was statistically significant（P=0.003）. Adverse events, including of hematologic toxicity, gastrointestinal toxicities, hand-foot syndrome and abnormal liver function were not significantly different between two groups.Conclusions： After initial disease control was achieved with the XT combination chemotherapy, capecitabine MT can significantly prolong PFS time with a favorable safety profile in m TNBC patients.

Real-world cost-effectiveness associated with infliximab maintenance therapy for moderate to severe Crohn's disease in China

BACKGROUND Infliximab was the first approved biologic treatment for moderate to severe Crohn's disease(MS-CD) in China. However, the cost-effectiveness of infliximab maintenance therapy(IMT) for MS-CD relative to conventional maintenance therapy remained unclarified.AIM To assess the cost-effectiveness of IMT for MS-CD in Chinese patients from the perspective of Chinese public insurance payer.METHODS A cohort of MS-CD patients managed in a Chinese tertiary care hospital was created to compare IMT with conventional maintenance therapy(CMT) for clinical outcomes and direct medical costs over a 1-year observation time using conventional regression analyses. A decision-analytic model with the generated evidence was constructed to assess the cost-effectiveness of IMT relative to CMT using reimbursed medical costs.RESULTS Based on the included 389 patients, IMT was associated with significantly higher disease remission chance [odds ratio: 4.060, P = 0.003], lower risk of developing new complications(odds ratio: 0.527, P = 0.010), higher utility value for quality of life(coefficient 0.822, P = 0.008), and lower total hospital costs related to disease management(coefficient-0.378, P = 0.008) than CMT. Base-case cost-effectiveness analysis estimated that IMT could cost Chinese health insurance payers $55260 to gain one quality-adjusted life year(QALY). The cost-effectiveness of IMT was mainly driven by the estimate of quality of life, treatment efficacy of maintenance therapy, mortality risk associated with active disease, and unit price of infliximab. The probability that IMT was cost-effective at a willingness-to-pay threshold of three times gross domestic product [2018 Chinese gross domestic product per capita(GDPPC)] was 86.4%.CONCLUSION IMT significantly improved real-world health outcomes and cost the Chinese public health insurance payers less than one GDPPC to gain one QALY in Chinese MS-CD patients.

Capecitabine Maintenance Therapy after First-Line Chemotherapy in Patients with Metastatic Colorectal Cancer

Objective:To evaluate the efficacy and toxicity of capecitabine maintenance therapy in metastatic colorectal cancer(mCRC) patients.Methods:From June 2001 to November 2006,after they had achieved clinical response from first-line chemotherapy,patients with mCRC in our hospital received two different treatment strategies.Thirty-three patients in maintenance group were treated with capecitabine 1000 mg/m2 po bid d1-14,q21d.Fifty-two patients in non-maintenance group did not receive any further chemotherapy.Results:Patients in maintenance group and non-maintenance group both received FOLFOX,FOLFIRI and XELOX as first-line therapy.The median chemotherapy cycles the two groups received were the same(6 vs 6).The response rates of first-line chemotherapy were 33.3% in maintenance group and 32.7% in non-maintenance group.Patients in maintenance group received 3-9 cycles of capecitabine therapy(median cycle 4).29/33(87.9%) patients in maintenance group and 47/52(90.4%) in non-maintenance group received following second-line chemotherapy,and no patients underwent targeted therapy.The median survival time and TTP were 40.4 months(95%CI:24.2-56.6) and 9.0 months(95%CI:6.7-11.3) in maintenance group,as compared with 21.5 months(95%CI:14.9-28.0,P=0.015) and 6.5 months(95%CI:4.4-8.5,P=0.007) in non-maintenance group.No severe adverse event was observed in the capecitabine maintenance group.Conclusion:mCRC patients could benefit from capecitabine maintenance therapy by prolonging survival time and TTP.

A Phase Ⅱ Trial of Gefitinib as Maintenance Therapy after First-Line Chemotherapy for Advanced Non-Small Cell Lung Cancer in China

Objective： To investigate the efficacy and safety of gefitinib as maintenance therapy for advanced non-small cell lung cancer （NSCLC） patients who obtained disease control （DC） after first-line chemotherapy in Chinese population. Methods： Chinese patients with advanced NSCLC treated with standard chemotherapy and obtained DC were assigned to receive gefitinib as maintenance treatment. The primary end point was overall survival time （OS）, the second end point was disease control rate （DCR） and progression-free survival time （PFS）. DCR included complete response （CR） plus partial response （PR） and plus stable disease （SD）. The impact of epidermal growth factor receptor （EGFR） mutation status on the treatment as exploratory point was also evaluated by denaturing high-performance liquid chromatography （DHPLC）. Results： Among 75 enrolled patients, the overall response rate was 37% and the DCR （CR ＋ PR ＋SD） was 66%. The median PFS and OS were 17.13 months and 26.13 months respectively, with 1- and 2-year survival rates 89.3% and 34.7%. Patients harboring somatic EGFR mutations obtained a prolonged median PFS and OS compared with EGFR wide type （25.1 vs. 13.0 months, P=0.019 and 33.37 vs. 25.57 months, P=0.014, respectively）. In COX regression model, only EGFR mutation status was the independently factor influencing both PFS and OS （P=0.029 and 0.017, respectively）, however, rash status was the predictor in terms of PFS （P=0.027）. Conclusion： Gefitinib produced encouraging survival when delivered as maintenance therapy in Chinese patients obtaining DC after first-line chemotherapy, especially for patients carrying somatic EGFR mutations. EGFR mutation is an independently predictive factor of survival.

Efficacy of capecitabine-based combination therapy and singleagent capecitabine maintenance therapy in patients with metastatic breast cancer

Objective： The purpose of this study was to observe the efficacy and toxicities of capecitabine-based chemotherapy and capecitabine monotherapy as maintenance therapy in the treatment of metastatic breast cancer（MBC）.Patients and methods： A total of 98 MBC patients were treated with capecitabine combined with vinorelbine（NX）. Results： The median number of treatment was 6 cycles（1-7 cycles）. There were two cases of complete remission（CR）, 58 partial remission, 27 stable disease（SD）, 11 progression disease. The overall response rate（ORR）（CR ＋ PR） was 61.2%. The clinical benefit rate（CBR） was 75.5%. Fifty of effective patients received with capecitabine monotherapy as maintenance therapy. The ORR（CR ＋ PR） was 4%. The CBR was 48%. The median progression-free survival（PFS） was 12 months. In maintenance therapy or not, the median post metastasis survival rate（MSR） was 63 and 28 months, respectively. In the combination therapy group, the major grade 3/4 toxicities included hand-foot syndrome（3.1%）, skin pigmentation（2.0%）, diarrhoea and abdominal distension（5.1%）, stomatitis（1.0%）, and leukopenia（20.4%）.Conclusions： Capecitabine-based combination therapy and single-agent capecitabine maintenance therapy were well tolerated and effective to MBC.

Efficacy and safety of S-1 maintenance therapy in advanced nonsmall- cell lung cancer patients

BACKGROUND Previous reports have demonstrated that S-1 has remarkable effects in the maintenance treatment of advanced non-small-cell lung cancer(NSCLC),and has less toxic and side effects than conventional drugs.AIM To investigate the efficacy and safety of S-1 maintenance therapy in patients with advanced NSCLC.METHODS Ninety-four patients with NSCLC admitted to our hospital from September 2015 to April 2018 were included in the study and divided into the S-1 group(47 cases)and the gemcitabine group(47 cases)by random digital table method.The S-1 group was treated with S-1,while the gemcitabine group received gemcitabine treatment.The clinical efficacy and quality of life of the patients after treatment in the two groups were evaluated.RESULTS There was no significant difference in the total effectiveness rate between the two groups(P=0.519).The quality-of-life scores indicated that there was no significant difference between the two groups in terms of four dimensions of the GQOLI-74 questionnaire(P=0.518,0.094,0.338,0.418).The incidence of nausea and vomiting,granulocytopenia and diarrhea in the S-1 group was significantly lower than that in the gemcitabine group(P=0.001,0.001 and 0.001,respectively).There was no significant difference in the incidence of thrombocytopenia(P=0.366),the progression-free survival(P=0.064),and the survival between the two groups(P=0.050).CONCLUSION S-1 maintenance therapy shows a significant therapeutic effect in patients with advanced NSCLC.It has the same clinical efficacy as gemcitabine,but with less toxic and side effects than conventional drugs.

Maintenance Therapy for NSCLC: Consensus and Controversy

Nowadays,advanced non-small cell lung cancer (NSCLC) is still an incurable disease.However,recent researches on maintenance therapy have led to considerable progress.Recently,pemetrexed and erlotinib have been approved for maintenance chemotherapy by both the U.S.Food and Drug Administration and European Medicines Agency.However,there are not adequate data to support the maintenance therapy as the standard treatment for advanced NSCLC and there has been no conclusive predictor of who will get benefit from maintenance chemotherapy and what type of maintenance,continuation or switch,is preferred.This article reviews the main studies on maintenance therapy of advanced NSCLC and discusses the results available to date.

The role of capecitabine as maintenance therapy in de novo metastatic nasopharyngeal carcinoma:A propensity score matching study

Background:Capecitabine was previously used as a second-line or salvage therapy for metastatic nasopharyngeal carcinoma(NPC)and has shown satisfactory curative effect as maintenance therapy in other metastatic cancers.This study aimed to explore the role of capecitabine as maintenance therapy in de novo metastatic NPC patients with different plasma Epstein-Barr virus(EBV)DNA levels before treatment.Methods:We selected de novo metastatic NPC patients treated with locoregional radiotherapy(LRRT)for this retrospective study.The propensity score matching(PSM)was applied to balance potential confounders between patients who underwent capecitabine maintenance therapy and those who did not with a ratio of 1:3.Overall survival(OS)was the primary endpoint.The association between capecitabine maintenance therapy and survival was assessed using the log-rank test and a Cox proportional hazard model.Results:Among all patients eligible for this study,64 received capecitabine maintenance therapy after LRRT.After PSM,192 patients were identified in the nonmaintenance group.In the matched cohort,patients treated with capecitabine achieved a higher 3-year OS rate compared with patients in the non-maintenance group(68.5%vs.61.8%,P=0.037).Multivariate analysis demonstrated that capecitabine maintenance therapy was an independent prognostic factor.In subgroup analysis,3-year OS rate was comparable between the maintenance and non-maintenance groups in patients with high pretreatment EBV DNA levels(˃30,000 copies/mL)(54.8%vs.45.8%,P=0.835),whereas patients with low pretreatment EBV DNA levels(≤30,000 copies/mL)could benefit from capecitabine maintenance therapy in OS(90.0%vs.68.1%,P=0.003).Conclusion:Capecitabine maintenance therapy may be superior to non-maintenance therapy in prolonging OS for de novo metastatic NPC patients with pretreatment EBV DNA≤30,000 copies/mL.groups in patients with high pretreatment EBV DNA levels(˃30,000 copies/mL)(54.8%vs.45.8%,P=0.835),whereas patients with low pretreatment EBV DNA levels(≤30,000 copies/mL)could benefit from capecitabine maintenance therapy in OS(90.0%vs.68.1%,P=0.003).Conclusion:Capecitabine maintenance therapy may be superior to non-maintenance therapy in prolonging OS for de novo metastatic NPC patients with pretreatment EBV DNA≤30,000 copies/mL.

Maintenance therapy in advanced non-small cell lung cancer： a prime-time for change？

Lung cancer is the leading cancer in terms of incidence and mortality in China and its incidence in China is predicted to increase in the next 20 years.1 The majority of the lung cancer patients are diagnosed with advanced stage disease,for which chemotherapy or targeted therapies are the mainstay palliative treatments.Before the identification of single-driver mutations,like the epidermal growth factor receptor （EGFR） mutation,platinum-based doublet was the standard first line treatment for advanced stage nonsmall cell lung cancer （NSCLC） patients with a good performance status （PS）.However,patient prognosis remains poor and the modest treatment efficacy seems to have reached a plateau despite newer generation of platinum doublets.2 The recommendation for the duration of first line platinum doublet treatment is 4-6 cycles.3 The paradigm was based on the fact that a protracted course of chemotherapy did not prolong survival but introduced cumulative toxicities.4,5 The use of maintenance therapy （MT）,defined by Grossi et al6 as the prolongation of chemotherapy with the administration of additional drugs at the end of a defined number of initial chemotherapy cycles after achieving maximum tumor response,was not considered as a standard option in the past.

Single-agent maintenance therapy in non-small cell lung cancer： a systematic review and meta-analysis

Background Can single-agent maintenance therapy be considered as an ideal strategy for non-small cell lung cancer （NSCLC） treatment to achieve prolonged survival and tolerated toxicity？ A systematic review and meta-analysis was performed to etuc（date this issue. Methods The electronic databases were searched for RCTs comparing single-agent maintenance therapy with placebo, best support care or observation. The required data for estimation of response, survival and toxicity were extracted from the publications and the combined data were calculated. Results Eleven RCTs involving 3686 patients were identified. We found a statistically significant higher probability of tumor response for patients with maintenance therapy versus control patients （OR： 2.80, 95% CI： 2.15-3.64）. Patients receiving maintenance therapy had significantly longer progression-free survival （PFS） （HR： 0.67, 95% CI： 0.62-0.71） and overall survival （OS） （HR： 0.84, 95% CI： 0.78-0.90）. However, maintenance therapy was associated with more severe toxicities （OR： 6.45, 95% CI： 4.61-9.01）. Conclusion In patients with advanced NSCLC, the use of single-agent maintenance therapy is associated with higher response rate and significantly prolongs PFS and OS despite of the risk of additional toxicity.

The Efficacy and Role of Probiotics for Maintenance of Remission in Crohn’s Disease: A Meta-Analysis and Survey

Crohn’s disease (CD) is a chronic inflammatory disease whose pathogenesis involves disturbances of the gastrointestinal microbiota. As the prevalence of CD increases, the need for a more effective and safe treatment is integral. Probiotics have been reported to be beneficial for numerous gastrointestinal diseases, providing health benefits and considering the microbial characteristics of CD’s pathogenesis. However, our knowledge of the efficacy of probiotic therapy in preventing relapse in CD is limited. How gastroenterologists have incorporated probiotics into their practice or probiotics observed implications for patients with CD has not been assessed. A quantitative survey was distributed to determine how gastroenterologists perceive and use probiotic-based therapies in CD practice. The second objective was to conduct a meta-analysis of the efficacy of probiotics for maintaining remission and preventing clinical and endoscopic relapse in CD. Performing a meta-analysis and survey will examine the role of probiotics in CD treatment. Surveyed gastroenterologists cited that probiotics have an adjunctive role and have been observed to alleviate common CD symptoms. Probiotics seem effective in reducing the relapse rate, specifically those of the multi-strain variety are more likely to be effective in maintaining CD remission. Further research with larger trials is required to replicate and solidify this efficacy. The meta-analysis only assessed the efficacy of probiotics as a maintenance treatment as measured by the risk of relapse;thus, no evidence supports probiotics’ ability to induce remission. The results of the meta-analysis and survey indicate that probiotics cannot treat CD without accompanying conventional drug therapies;nevertheless, independent of treatment capacities, probiotics still yield health benefits for CD patients.

A Prospective Study of Maintenance Electroconvulsive Therapy in an Elderly Depressed Population

Objective: This study was conducted to discern the efficacy of maintenance electroconvulsive therapy (M-ECT) in a population of depressed elderly individuals with treatment-resistant depression. Methodology: Twenty-nine (N = 29) individuals over the age of 65 years of age and older were assigned to a control or treatment group on the basis of their decision to receive M-ECT (treatment group) or to refrain from receiving the treatment (control group). A battery of psychometric tests designed to measure severity of depression, quality of life, and cognition were administered at baseline as well as at 6-month and 1-year intervals. Results: Statistical analysis of the data indicated no significant differences in the efficacy of M-ECT between the control and treatment groups in any of the tests administered during the participation of the study. Conclusion: The results of the study suggest that there is no added benefit for patients administered M-ECT. However, study sample size and availability of alternative treatment regimens for the control group limit generalizability of these findings and warrant further investigation.

Effects of progressive muscle relaxation therapy on Maintenance hemodialysis patients:a systematic review and meta-analysis

Objective:This study aimed to evaluate the effects of progressive relaxation therapy on patients with maintenance hemodialysis.Methods:A literature search was performed using PubMed,Embase,Cochrane Library,China National Knowledge Infrastructure,and Wanfang Data from inception to July 2020.Randomized controlled trials on the use of progressive muscle relaxation therapy in maintenance hemodialysis patients were selected.The primary outcomes were the depression and anxiety.Secondary outcomes included fatigue and sleep.Two reviewers proceeded study selection and quality assessment of included trials and performed heterogeneity of included studies before meta-analysis.Results:A total of 8 studies,which comprised a total of 668 participants were included in the final meta-analysis.The results showed that progressive muscle relaxation therapy could reduce the depression of patients(MD=-5.11,95%CI:-6.74 to-3.48,P<0.001),reduce the anxiety(SMD=-1.27,95%CI:-1.73 to-0.82,P<0.001),relieve fatigue symptoms(MD=-0.87,95%CI:-1.20 to-0.53,P<0.001),improve the sleep quality(MD=-1.69,95%CI:-1.95 to-1.42,P<0.001).Conclusion:Progressive muscle relaxation therapy has positive effects on depression,anxiety,fatigue and sleep quality in patients with maintenance hemodialysis.While concurrent evidence is insufficient,and further studies of high quality are needed to strengthen the conclusion.

Immediate Versus Delayed Treatment with EGFR Tyrosine Kinase Inhibitors after First-line Therapy in Advanced Non-small-cell Lung Cancer

Objective： To analyze the outcomes of patients who received TKI immediately after the first-line without progression as maintenance treatment （immediate group） vs. those received delayed treatment upon disease progression as second-line therapy （delayed group）. Methods： The study included 159 no-small-cell lung cancer （NSCLC） patients who received gefitinib or erlotinib as maintenance treatment in the immediate group （85 patients） or as second-line therapy in the delayed group （74 patients）. The primary end point was progression-free survival （PFS）. EGFR mutation status was detected using denaturing high-performance liquid chromatography （DHPLC）. Results： PFS was 17.3 and 16.4 months in the immediate and delayed groups, respectively （hazard ratio [HR], 0.99; 95% Confidence Interval [CI]： 0.69-1.42; P=0.947）. In a subgroup analysis that included only patients with EGFR mutation, however, PFS was significantly longer in the immediate group than in the delayed group （HR, 0.48; 95% CI： 0.27-0.85; P=0.012）. In patients with wild type EGFR, the risk for disease progression was comparable between the two groups （HR, 1.23; 95% CI： 0.61-2.51; P=0.564）. No significant difference was demonstrated between the immediate and delayed group in terms of the overall survival （OS） （26.1 months vs. 21.6 months, respectively; HR=0.53; 95% CI： 0.27 to 1.06; P=0.072）. There was also no difference in the incidence of adverse events between the two groups. Conclusions： EGFR TKI maintenance improves PFS in patients with EGFR mutation. Prospectively designed clinical studies that compare TKI immediate vs. delayed treatment after first-line chemotherapy upon disease progression are needed.

Efficacy and clinical outcome of chemotherapy and endocrine therapy as first-line treatment in patients with hormone receptor-positive HER2-negative metastatic breast cancer

Background:Endocrine therapy(ET)and ET-based regimens are the preferred first-line treatment options for hormone receptor(HR)-positive and human epidermal growth factor receptor 2(HER2)-negative metastatic breast cancer(HR+/HER2-MBC),while chemotherapy(CT)is commonly used in clinical practice.The aim of this study was to investigate the efficacy and clinical outcome of ET and CT as first-line treatment in Chinese patients with HR+/HER2-MBC.Methods:Patients diagnosed with HR+/HER2-MBC between January 1st,1996 and September 30th,2018 were screened from the Chinese Society of Clinical Oncology Breast Cancer database.The initial and maintenance first-line treatment,progression-free survival(PFS),and overall survival(OS)were analyzed.Results:Among the 1877 included patients,1215(64.7%)received CT and 662(35.3%)received ET as initial first-line treatment.There were no statistically significant differences in PFS and OS between patients receiving ET and CT as initial first-line treatment in the total population(PFS:12.0 vs.11.0 months,P=0.22;OS:54.0 vs.49.0 months,P=0.09)and propensity score matched population.For patients without disease progression after at least 3 months of initial therapy,maintenance ET following initial CT(CT-ET cohort,n=449)and continuous schedule of ET(ET cohort,n=527)had longer PFS than continuous schedule of CT(CT cohort,n=406)in the total population(CT-ET cohort vs.CT cohort:17.0 vs.8.5 months;P<0.01;ET cohort vs.CT cohort:14.0 vs.8.5 months;P<0.01)and propensity score matched population.OS in the three cohorts yielded the same results as PFS.Conclusions:ET was associated with similar clinical outcome to CT as initial first-line treatment.For patients without disease progression after initial CT,switching to maintenance ET showed superiority in clinical outcome over continuous schedule of CT.

Cronkhite-Canada syndrome with steroid dependency: A case report

BACKGROUND Cronkhite-Canada syndrome(CCS)is a rare nonhereditary disease characterized by chronic diarrhoea,diffuse gastrointestinal polyposis and ectodermal manifestations.The lethality of CCS can be up to 50%if it is untreated or if treatment is delayed or inadequate.More than 35%of the patients do not achieve long-term clinical remission after corticosteroid administration,with relapse occurring during or after the cessation of glucocorticoid use.The optimal strategy of maintenance therapy of this disease is controversial.CASE SUMMARY A 47-year-old man presented to the hospital with a 3-mo history of frequent watery diarrhoea,accompanied by macular skin pigmentation that included the palms and soles,and onychodystrophy of the fingernails and toenails.Gastroscopy and colonoscopy revealed numerous polyps in the stomach and colon.After other possibilities were ruled out by a series of examinations,CCS was diagnosed and treated with prednisone.The patient took prednisone for more than 1 year before achieving complete resolution of his symptoms and endoscopic findings.The patient was then given prednisone 5 mg/d for 6 mo of maintenance therapy.With clinical improvement and polyp regression,prednisone was discontinued.Eight mo after the discontinuation of prednisone,the diarrhoea and gastrointestinal polyps relapsed.Therefore,the patient was given the same dose of prednisone,and complete remission was achieved again.CONCLUSION It is necessary to extend the duration of prednisone maintenance therapy for CCS.Prednisone is still effective when readministered after relapse.Surveillance endoscopy at intervals of 1 year or less is recommended to assess mucosal disease activity.

Immunotherapy as maintenance treatment in metastatic triple negative breast cancer

Metastatic triple negative breast cancer(mTNBC)is an aggressive disease associated with a poor prognosis as compared to other subtypes of breast cancer.Significant advances have been made in recent years with new approvals for PARP inhibitors for those patients who harbor germline BRCA mutations and immune checkpoint inhibitors for patients with programmed death ligand-1(PD-L1)expressing tumors.These therapies are associated with favorable toxicity profiles and improved health-related quality of life when compared with chemotherapy.Maintenance therapy,now recognized as the mainstay for patients with ovarian malignancies,takes advantage of the benefit of low-intensity therapies to suppress a disease over a prolonged period of time following maximal response to induction therapy.This strategy has been little explored in the treatment of mTNBC.Here,we briefly discuss the evidence to date lending credence to this treatment paradigm and examine the potential role of immunotherapy as maintenance in the management of mTNBC.

The Promise of Pharmacogenomics in ReducingToxicity During Acute Lymphoblastic LeukemiaMaintenance Treatment

Pediatric acute lymphoblastic leukemia(ALL) affects a substantial number of children every year and requires a long and rigorous course of chemotherapy treatments in three stages, with the longest phase, the maintenance phase, lasting 2–3 years. While the primary drugs used in the maintenance phase, 6-mercaptopurine(6-MP) and methotrexate(MTX), are necessary for decreasing risk of relapse, they also have potentially serious toxicities, including myelosuppression, which may be life-threatening, and gastrointestinal toxicity. For both drugs, pharmacogenomic factors have been identified that could explain a large amount of the variance in toxicity between patients, and may serve as effective predictors of toxicity during the maintenance phase of ALL treatment.6-MP toxicity is associated with polymorphisms in the genes encoding thiopurine methyltransferase(TPMT), nudix hydrolase 15(NUDT15), and potentially inosine triphosphatase(ITPA), which vary between ethnic groups. Moreover, MTX toxicity is associated with polymorphisms in genes encoding solute carrier organic anion transporter family member 1B1(SLCO1B1) and dihydrofolate reductase(DHFR). Additional polymorphisms potentially associated with toxicities for MTX have also been identified, including those in the genes encoding solute carrier family 19 member 1(SLC19A1)and thymidylate synthetase(TYMS), but their contributions have not yet been well quantified. It is clear that pharmacogenomics should be incorporated as a dosage-calibrating tool in pediatric ALL treatment in order to predict and minimize the occurrence of serious toxicities for these patients.

Mycophenolate mofetil or tacrolimus compared with azathioprine in long-term maintenance treatment for active lupus nephritis

This study aimed to evaluate the efficacy and safety of mycophenolate mofetil(MMF)or tacrolimus(TAC)compared with azathioprine(AZA)as maintenance therapy for active lupus nephritis(ALN).Patients with ALN who responded to 24 weeks of induction treatment were enrolled.Patients who received MMF or TAC as induction therapy continued MMF or TAC treatment during the maintenance period,whereas those who received intravenous cyclophosphamide were subjected to AZA treatment.The primary endpoint was the incidence of renal relapse.Secondary endpoints included extrarenal flares and composite endpoints(deaths,end-stage renal disease,or doubling of serum creatinine levels).A total of 123 ALN patients(47 in the MMF group,37 in the TAC group,and 39 in the AZA group)were enrolled.The median follow-up time was 60 months.Ten MMF-treated patients,ten TAC-treated patients,and eight AZA-treated patients experienced renal relapses(P=0.844).The cumulative renal relapse rates in the MMF group(P=0.934)and TAC group(P=0.673)were similar to the renal relapse rate in the AZA group.No significant difference in the incidence of severe adverse event was observed among the groups.Long-term maintenance therapies with MMF or TAC might have similarly low rates of renal relapse and similar safety profiles compared with AZA.