Publications (10)26.73 Total impact
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Article: Evaluating the role of prophylaxis in the management of invasive fungal infections in patients with hematologic malignancy.
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ABSTRACT: Invasive fungal infection (IFI) is a persistent problem among critically ill and immunocompromised patients, especially hematopoietic stem cell transplant or solid organ transplant recipients, or patients on intensive chemotherapy for acute leukemia. Although numerous antifungal agents are available, IFI remains a serious problem because of obstacles to timely diagnosis and high morbidity and mortality rates associated with such infection. Improvements in treatment of underlying diseases have rapidly expanded the patient populations at risk for IFI with increased use of immunosuppressants, aggressive chemotherapy, broad-spectrum antibiotics, and narrow-spectrum antifungal prophylaxis. There are various treatment strategies that can be used to manage IFI: prophylaxis, empiric, preemptive, and directed. As the infection progresses, the prospect of successfully treating an infection diminishes; conversely, the earlier the intervention, the greater the possibility of unnecessary treatment. This article discusses the epidemiology of the most important fungal pathogens, identifies high-risk patient groups and risk factors associated with IFI, and critically evaluates the advantages and disadvantages of available diagnostic tests and treatment strategies and the rationale for antifungal prophylaxis. For patients at high risk for IFI, antifungal prophylaxis is an attractive strategy, and numerous randomized, controlled clinical studies have documented the benefit of such prophylaxis as well as the most efficacious of currently available agents.European Journal Of Haematology 07/2011; 87(4):289-301. · 2.61 Impact Factor -
Article: Update on bacteraemia in oncology and hematology.
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ABSTRACT: The present article is an update of the literature on bacteraemia in onco-hematologic patients. A multidisciplinary group of Spanish physicians with an interest in this field selected the most important papers published recently. Papers from the fields of basic science, epidemiology, causative microorganisms and clinical syndromes are discussed. Important aspects of these studies include the assessment of different strategies in the management of fever in neutropenic patients and the validation of specific scores. Moreover, early identification of patients at risk of bacterial and of multi-drug resistant infections is a topic of increasing interest.Enfermedades Infecciosas y Microbiología Clínica 03/2011; 29 Suppl 4:48-53. · 1.49 Impact Factor -
Article: Incidence of cytomegalovirus infection and disease in patients with lymphoproliferative disorders treated with alemtuzumab.
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ABSTRACT: The aim of this study was to assess the incidence of cytomegalovirus (CMV) infection and disease in patients with hematologic malignancies treated with alemtuzumab. The outcome of CMV infection in hematologic patients treated with alemtuzumab in 19 hospitals throughout Spain was assessed retrospectively. Data were collected from the medical records of patients over a period of 6 months following initiation of alemtuzumab therapy. We studied 102 patients (89 with B-cell chronic lymphocytic leukemia and 13 with other lymphoproliferative diseases, with a median age of 63 years [range 29-81 years]). Alemtuzumab was administered for a mean of 11.2 (standard deviation: 13.8) weeks, with a median total dose of 423 mg (range: 59-1440 mg). Alemtuzumab as a single agent was administered in 92.2% of patients and was associated with chemotherapy in 7.8% of cases. Prophylactic antivirals included famcyclovir (47%), acyclovir (34%), valacyclovir (14%) and valgancyclovir (5%). CMV viremia testing was performed a mean of 6.3 times (range: 1-19). The incidence of CMV infection was 38.9% (46% in patients treated with steroids and 75% in patients receiving ≥1000 mg of alemtuzumab). Treatment of CMV infection included gancyclovir or valgancyclovir in 94% of cases. Viremia became negative after a median of 20 days (95% CI: 13.4-26.6). CMV disease occurred in five patients. The incidence of CMV infection in alemtuzumab-treated patients was 38.9%. The incidence increased in patients treated concomitantly with steroids and in those treated with high doses of alemtuzumab, although only eight patients received 1000 mg or more, systematic monitoring of CMV viremia and early treatment of infection resulted in a favorable outcome of CMV reactivation.Expert Review of Hematology 02/2011; 4(1):9-16. · 1.16 Impact Factor -
Article: [Diagnosis and treatment of nocturnal paroxysmal hemoglobinuria].
Medicina Clínica 11/2010; 136(3):121-7. · 1.38 Impact Factor -
Article: [Recommendations of the Spanish Society of Infectious Diseases and Clinical Microbiology (SEIMC) on the prevention of invasive fungal infection due to filamentous fungi].
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ABSTRACT: Invasive fungal infections (IFI) due to filamentous fungi still have high rates of mortality associated with the difficulties of early detection of the infection and their therapeutic limitations. Consequently, a useful approach is to prevent patients at risk of fungal infection from getting in contact with conidia of Aspergillus and other mould species. This document describes the recommendations to prevent IFI due to filamentous fungi, prepared by Spanish experts from different medical and professional fields. The paper reviews the incidence of the IFI in different risk populations and the questions related to environmental measures of prevention, control of hospital infections, additional procedures for prevention, prevention of IFI outside hospitals, as well as antifungal prophylaxis.Enfermedades Infecciosas y Microbiología Clínica 03/2010; 28(3):172.e1-172.e21. · 1.49 Impact Factor -
Article: Is mobilized peripheral blood comparable with bone marrow as a source of hematopoietic stem cells for allogeneic transplantation from HLA-identical sibling donors? A case-control study.
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ABSTRACT: Granulocyte colony-stimulating factor mobilized peripheral blood stem cells are increasingly used instead of bone marrow as a stem cell source for transplantation. Whereas this change is almost complete for autologous transplantation, there are some concerns when considering allogeneic transplants. We performed a retrospective case-control study including 820 adult patients who had received an allogeneic stem cell transplant from an HLA-identical sibling donor. Quality of life (QoL) was assessed in 150 patients using the EORTC Quality of Life Questionnaire C30 (QLQ-C30). There were no statistically significant differences in overall survival at ten years (bone marrow: 48.9% vs. peripheral blood stem cells: 39.8%; p=0.621), transplant-related mortality (bone marrow: 28.9% vs. peripheral blood stem cells: 34.4%; p=0.682) or relapse incidence at 9 years (29.4% vs. 35.2%, respectively; p=0.688). Similar outcomes were maintained independently of the phase of the disease. However, multivariate analysis identified a higher incidence of acute graft-versus-host disease grades II-IV (p: 0.023; Hazard ratio [HR]: 1.41; 95% confidence interval [CI]: 1.05-1.89) and grades III-IV (p: 0.006; HR: 1.89; 95% CI: 1.20-2.98), in the peripheral blood stem cells-stem cell transplant group. As previously described, extensive chronic graft-versus-host disease was also more frequent in the peripheral blood stem cells group (28% vs. 15.6%; p<0.001). Patients transplanted with peripheral blood stem cells had significant impairment of role and social functioning. Although overall survival was not affected by the stem cell source, peripheral blood stem cell transplants were associated with a higher risk of both acute and chronic GvHD. Global quality of life was similar in both groups, but patients transplanted with peripheral blood stem cells showed worse role and social functioning scores, probably related to the increased incidence of chronic graft-versus-host disease.Haematologica 10/2009; 94(9):1282-8. · 6.42 Impact Factor -
Article: Sirolimus as part of immunosuppressive therapy for refractory chronic graft-versus-host disease.
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ABSTRACT: Many patients receiving allogeneic stem cells develop chronic graft-versus-host disease (cGVHD), which remains as the main cause of morbidity and mortality. Although the first line of therapy is generally with steroids, it is not well known how to manage refractory cases. Those patients are usually treated with alternative experimental agents. Sirolimus (Rapamycin), a new immunosuppressive agent, inhibits signal transduction and cell cycle progression after binding to FKBP12. We report a retrospective analysis with sirolimus in transplant recipients with cGVHD refractory to previous immunosuppressive therapy. Forty-seven patients with refractory or relapsed cGVHD were treated with the combination of sirolimus and calcineurin inhibitors (n = 33), mycophenolate (n = 9), or prednisone (n = 5). Thirty-eight of 47 (81%) patients had clinical responses (complete = 18, partial = 20). The main toxicity was mild renal failure, particularly at the start of therapy. Four patients who presented thrombotic microangiopathy were managed with plasmapheresis and the discontinuation of sirolimus and calcineurin inhibitors. Statistical analysis showed the type of cGVHD onset and presirolimus clinical status as the main variables influencing the response to treatment. The Kaplan-Meier estimate of survival was 57.4% at 3 years. The current study shows the efficacy and safety of sirolimus in refractory cGVHD patients. Further investigation is warranted to elucidate the role of sirolimus in cGVHD, and find the best combination (sirolimus + calcineurin inhibitors versus others) for therapeutic use.Biology of Blood and Marrow Transplantation 07/2007; 13(6):701-6. · 3.87 Impact Factor -
Article: [Economic cost of peripheral blood progenitor cell transplantation in Spain].
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ABSTRACT: Peripheral blood hematopoietic progenitor cell transplantation (PCT), both autologous and allogeneic, has been consolidated in the last decades as an important tool in the treatment of a number of oncohematologic malignancies. Nevertheless, there are scarce data about the real cost of the autologous procedure in our setting, and to date the economic impact of allogeneic PCT in our health system is unknown. In the present study a comparative analysis of the economic cost of both methods of PCT was carried out in a series of 67 consecutive patients who were eligible for autologous PCT (n = 48), or allogeneic PCT (n = 19) in a 2 year study period. The expenses derived from pretransplant studies, from the collection and processing of hematopoietic progenitors, and from the transplantation procedure itself were evaluated. The collection of hematopoietic progenitors was significantly more expensive in autologous than in allogeneic PCT (p = 0.0001), owing both to the difficulty in the mobilization of such cells in patients who have been treated for the underlying disease and to the higher costs derived from the criopreservation of the collected material. Nevertheless, the costs of the pretransplant studies were significantly higher in allogeneic PCT due to the expenses of histocompatibility studies (p = 0.0001). Similarly, the costs derived from the transplantation procedure itself were significantly higher in allogeneic procedures (p = 0.0002) as those patients required a longer hospitalization, and also because of the higher number of patients requiring conditioning regimens including total body irradiation. From these data we conclude that the real cost of PCT in our setting is 24,000 Euros for the autologous procedure, while it is 34,000 Euros in the context of allogeneic transplantation.Medicina Clínica 11/2004; 123(11):401-5. · 1.38 Impact Factor -
Article: Hla-DPB1 mismatch in HLA-A-B-DRB1 identical sibling donor stem cell transplantation and acute graft-versus-host disease.
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ABSTRACT: The role of human leukocyte antigen (HLA)-DPB1 as a transplantation antigen is controversial. A higher incidence of acute graft-versus-host disease (aGVHD) has been described after unrelated donor bone marrow transplant when both HLA-DPB1 alleles were mismatched. We investigated the impact of a single HLA-DPB1 mismatch after HLA-A-B-DRB1 identical sibling donor transplantation on aGVHD. We analyzed 627 adult patient-donor pairs and identified 30 pairs without HLA-DPB1 identity (4.78%). In 17 cases, the patient had an allele that was not shared by the donor. The cumulative incidence of grades II-IV aGVHD was higher in the HLA-DPB1 mismatched group (66.7% vs. 35.7%, p=0.012). The HLA-DPB1 mismatch was identified by multivariate analysis as an independent risk factor for aGVHD (p=0.020, RR=2.68, 95% CI: 1.73-3.62). HLA-DPB1 can mediate alloreactive responses. A single HLA-DPB1 mismatch increases the risk of aGVHD after sibling donor stem cell transplantation.Transplantation 05/2004; 77(7):1107-10. · 4.00 Impact Factor -
Article: Positive selection for CD34+ reduces the incidence and severity of veno-occlusive disease of the liver after HLA-identical sibling allogeneic peripheral blood stem cell transplantation.
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ABSTRACT: T-cell depletion (TCD), primarily developed to prevent graft-vs-host disease (GVHD), might reduce early liver dysfunction after allogeneic hematopoietic stem cell transplantation. However, no comparative studies have been performed to investigate this. We analyzed the influence of selection for CD34(+) cells on the incidence and severity of hepatic veno-occlusive disease (VOD). Five hundred and one patients who underwent allogeneic peripheral blood stem cell transplantation (PBSCT) from HLA-identical siblings were included in the present study. Two hundred and ninety patients (59%) were grafted with CD34+ positively selected grafts and 211 (41%) with nonmanipulated grafts. Their mean age was 38 years (range 17-63). All patients had hematological malignancies and 96% were conditioned with combinations either of cyclophosphamide plus total-body irradiation or of cyclophosphamide plus busulphan. Most of the patients received GVHD prophylaxis with methotrexate (MTX) or cyclosporin A. Fifty-two patients (10.4%) developed VOD. VOD was more frequent in patients receiving nonmanipulated grafts (16.1% vs 6.2%; p<0.0009), in those with a Karnofsky score less than 90 (17.5% vs 7.8%; p=0.001), and with the use of MTX for GVHD prophylaxis (14.8% vs 7%; p=0.005). In multivariate analyses, only CD34+ positive selection (p=0.0007) and Karnofsky score (p=0.004) emerged as independent risk factors for VOD. The same effect was observed in the subset of patients with severe VOD. These findings show that CD34+ selection not only decreases the incidence of GVHD but also prevents VOD after HLA-identical sibling PBSCT.Experimental Hematology 07/2003; 31(6):545-50. · 2.90 Impact Factor
Top co-authors
Top Journals
Institutions
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2011
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Hospital Universitario Ramón y Cajal
Madrid, Madrid, Spain -
Hospital Universitario Central de Asturias
Oviedo, Asturias, Spain -
Universität Köln
- Internal Medicine
Köln, North Rhine-Westphalia, Germany
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