PURPOSE: Quizartinib, an oral, selective, second-generation, type-II FMS-like tyrosine kinase 3 (FLT3) inhibitor with high binding affinity to internal tandem duplication (ITD) and wild-type (WT) FLT3, has shown early clinical activity as monotherapy in patients with relapsed/refractory FLT3 -ITD–negative AML. The phase III QuANTUM-First trial showed that quizartinib significantly prolonged survival versus placebo when added to standard chemotherapy, followed by single-agent maintenance, in patients with newly diagnosed (ND) FLT3- ITD–positive AML. We investigated the safety and efficacy of quizartinib in patients with ND FLT3 -ITD–negative AML. METHODS: The phase II, randomized, double-blind, placebo-controlled QUIWI trial enrolled patients age 18-70 years with ND FLT3 -ITD–negative (mutant-to-WT allelic ratio <0.03) AML. Patients were randomly assigned 2:1 to receive standard induction and consolidation chemotherapy combined with either quizartinib 60 mg once daily or placebo, followed by single-agent maintenance with quizartinib or placebo. The primary end point was event-free survival (EFS). Secondary end points included overall survival (OS) and safety. RESULTS: Overall, 273 patients were randomly assigned to quizartinib (n = 180) or placebo (n = 93). At data cutoff, median EFS was 20.4 months and 9.9 months in the quizartinib and placebo arms, respectively ( P = .046). Median OS was not reached and 29.3 months in the quizartinib and placebo arms, respectively ( P = .012); 3-year OS rates were 60.8% and 45.7%. The most frequently reported adverse events (any grade) were fever, rash, diarrhea, and mucositis. CONCLUSION: The addition of quizartinib to standard chemotherapy was associated with significantly longer EFS and OS than placebo in patients with ND FLT3 -ITD–negative AML.

(1) Background: Aspergillus spp. is a widely distributed filamentous fungus in the environment due to its high sporulation capacity. Currently, invasive aspergillosis (IA) is the most common invasive fungal infection in patients with hematologic malignancies, with high rates of mortality and morbidity. The multifactorial nature of the disease requires appropriate risk stratification to enable the most appropriate preventive measures to be adapted and implemented according to the characteristics of the patient. In this sense, the present research aims to identify recent risk factors and environmental control measures against invasive aspergillosis to establish preventive actions to reduce the incidence of invasive aspergillosis in hospitals. (2) Methods: We conducted a qualitative systematic review of the scientific literature on environmental risk factors and preventive measures for invasive aspergillosis in patients with hematologic malignancies. The Medline, Cochrane, and Scopus databases were consulted, following the PRISMA and STROBE guidelines. (3) Results: Adequate implementation of environmental control measures is presented as the most efficient intervention in terms of prevention to decrease the incidence of invasive aspergillosis in hospitals. Neutropenia, fungal contamination, insufficient environmental control measures in hospital and home settings, length of hospital stay, and anemia, are identified as independent risk factors. We show that HEPA, LAF, and Plasmair^® systems are suitable methods to reduce the concentration of airborne fungal spores. Antifungal prophylaxis did not significantly influence IA reduction in our study. (4) Conclusions: Proper professional training and environmental control measures in hospitals are essential for the prevention of invasive aspergillosis. We should optimize risk stratification for patients with hematologic malignancies. Antifungal prophylaxis should be complementary to environmental control measures and should never be substituted for the latter. Studies should also be undertaken to evaluate the efficiency of environmental control measures against IA at patients’ homes.

Background/Objectives: Patients with relapsed/refractory (R/R) AML with FLT3 mutation (FLT3^mut) have a dismal prognosis. FLT3^mut offers a target for therapy in these patients. Gilteritinib (gilter) and quizartinib (quizar) have demonstrated efficacy as single agents in two phase 3 clinical trials. Methods: We retrospectively analyzed the characteristics, treatments, and outcomes of 50 patients with R/R FLT3^mut AML who received gilter or quizar as monotherapy in 27 Spanish centers before their commercial availability. Forty-four patients were treated with gilter and six with quizar. Results: The median age was 62.5 years, and 52% were women. Most patients presented with FLT3-ITD mutations (80%); 46% had refractory disease and 54% had relapsed disease at treatment initiation. First-line treatment was chemotherapy in 80% of patients, with 40% of these also receiving midostaurin. Twenty-five patients (50%) had previously received FLT3 inhibitor, and twenty-eight (56%) had received more than one line treatment before starting gilter/quizar. The rates of complete remission (CR), CR without hematological recovery (CRi), and partial remission were 22%, 18%, and 16%, respectively. The median overall survival (OS) and disease-free survival were 4.74 months and 2.99 months, respectively. We observed a significant improvement in OS in patients who had received only one prior line of therapy compared to those who had received two or more therapies (10.77 months vs. 4.24 months, p = 0.016). Multivariate analysis identified failure to achieve CR/CRi, receiving more than one prior line of therapy, age, and white blood cells count as independent prognostic factors for OS. The most common toxicities were febrile neutropenia, liver function abnormalities, and QT interval prolongation. Conclusions: Gilter/quizar monotherapy are effective and tolerable options for patients with R/R FLT3^mut AML in a real-world setting. Response and toxicity rates are similar to those reported in the phase 3 trials, despite the more heterogeneous nature of the study population.

In adults with Philadelphia chromosome-negative (Ph-) acute lymphoblastic leukemia (ALL) genetic risk is usually combined with measurable residual disease (MRD) assignment to consolidation therapy. However, this combination is not uniform across trials and centralized assessment is not always performed. This study analyzed patients' outcomes using centrally assessed MRD and genetics. Patients with high genetic risk (HGR), those who required two induction cycles for complete remission (CR), and CR patients with end-of-induction (EOI) MRD ≥0.01% were assigned to allogeneic hematopoietic stem cell transplant (alloHSCT), while the remaining patients were assigned to delayed consolidation and maintenance. HGR for B-ALL included KMT2A rearrangements, low hypodiploidy and age >35 years, homozygous TP53 mutations/deletions, or concomitant IKZF1 and CDKN2A/B deletions. HGR in T-ALL included absence of NOTCH1/FBXW7 mutations and/or K/NRAS or PTEN alterations. Patients with early T-ALL (ETP) received a different induction regimen, and all were assigned to alloHSCT. Median (range) age of 436 patients was 39 (18-60) years, 332 with B-lineage ALL and 104 T-ALL. By intention to treat, 243 non-ETP patients (61%) were assigned to alloHSCT and 157 (39%) to CT. The 3-year overall survival (OS) probability (95% CI) was 64% (58%-69%). For patients with CR and EOI MRD<0.01% without HGR (n=109), the OS probability was 81% (70%-89%), compared with 50% (34%-63%) for MRD-negative patients with HGR (n=64). In patients with ETP-ALL the probability of 3-year OS was 61% (37%-79%). The combination of genetics and MRD allows accurate identification of adult Ph- ALL patients candidates to alloHSCT or chemotherapy. The trial was registered at www.ClinicalTrials.gov: NCT04179929

Classic Hodgkin lymphoma (CHL) constitutes a B-cell malignant lymphoid neoplasm derived from the germinal center. Despite current treatment protocols based on chemotherapy, radiotherapy, anti-cluster of differentiation (CD) 30 antibody-drug conjugates, immunotherapy, and hematopoietic stem cell transplantation (HSCT), between 10% and 20% of CHL patients fail to achieve a complete response. The reasons underlying this lack of treatment sensitivity remain unclear. Traditionally, clinical and analytical variables have constituted the cornerstone of CHL prognostic model development. However, in recent years, the distribution and spatial relationships of cancer and immune cells within the CHL tumor microenvironment (TME) have emerged as novel potential candidates for risk stratification and treatment personalization. Underpinning this field of research, advances in digital image analysis (DIA) and computational pathology (CP) tools have been fundamental, as these methods enable objective quantification of TME elements and the definition of their topological arrangement. Novel CHL prognostic models integrating data across DNA sequencing in peripheral blood (liquid biopsy), single-cell RNA sequencing (scRNAseq), spatial transcriptomics, positron emission tomography/computed tomography (PET/CT) imaging, and topological features of TME could inform better clinical decision-making in the near future. In this work, we review the current state of CP and DIA studies in CHL, emphasizing the transition from traditional histopathological characterization to computational biology, highlighting the prognostic value of TME components, and proposing an updated framework for CHL tumor evolution and cellular dynamics as ecological systems. This study aims to review the contributions of DIA and CP in clinical and translational research on CHL. The results of this study may contribute to the identification of new prognostic biomarkers and their use in both the design of risk stratification models and clinical trials for CHL.

RAS mutations are recurrent in acute myeloid leukemia (AML); yet, their genomic and clinical landscape remain poorly characterized. We analyzed centralized molecular profiling data in 8,553 patients with newly diagnosed AML. Of these, 1,775 (21%) harbored RAS mutations: NRAS in 1,103 (13%), KRAS in 445 (5%), and both in 227 (3%). RAS mutations primarily clustered in P-loop hotspots (G12/G13, 70%), with NRAS showing higher Q61 mutation prevalence (24% vs. 9%) and KRAS showing additional K117/A146 hotspots. Multiple RAS mutations occurred in 23% of patients. Convergent evolution of RAS signaling mutations emerged as a key feature of RASmut AML. RTK/RAS pathway mutations were non-uniformly enriched: PTPN11, KIT and FLT3-TKD mutations were positively associated, CBL mutations showed no association, and FLT3-ITD mutations were negatively associated. The prognostic impact of RAS mutations was dependent on the genomic background and treatment. In multivariate analyses in intensively treated patients, NRAS mutations showed opposing associations with overall survival (OS): adverse in patients with AML, myelodysplasia-related (HR=1.32, p=0.036) and favorable in those with NPM1 (HR=0.61, p=0.036) or FLT3-ITD (HR=0.63, p=0.048) mutations, among others. KRAS mutations predicted inferior OS (HR=1.41; p=0.003). In patients treated with non-intensive, venetoclax-based regimens, RAS mutations were associated with markedly inferior OS in patients with NPM1 (HR=2.98, p=0.007) or IDH1/2 mutations (HR=4.06, p<0.001). These data inform risk stratification and development of RAS-targeting strategies in AML.