Allogeneic natural killer (NK) cell adoptive transfer has shown the potential to induce remissions in relapsed or refractory leukemias and lymphomas, but strategies to enhance NK cell survival and function are needed to improve clinical efficacy. Here, we demonstrated that NK cells cultured ex vivo with interleukin-15 (IL-15) and nicotinamide (NAM) exhibited stable induction of l -selectin (CD62L), a lymphocyte adhesion molecule important for lymph node homing. High frequencies of CD62L were associated with elevated transcription factor forkhead box O1 (FOXO1), and NAM promoted the stability of FOXO1 by preventing proteasomal degradation. NK cells cultured with NAM exhibited metabolic changes associated with elevated glucose flux and protection against oxidative stress. NK cells incubated with NAM also displayed enhanced cytotoxicity and inflammatory cytokine production and preferentially persisted in xenogeneic adoptive transfer experiments. We also conducted a first-in-human phase 1 clinical trial testing adoptive transfer of NK cells expanded ex vivo with IL-15 and NAM (GDA-201) combined with monoclonal antibodies in patients with relapsed or refractory non-Hodgkin lymphoma (NHL) and multiple myeloma (MM) (NCT03019666). Cellular therapy with GDA-201 and rituximab was well tolerated and yielded an overall response rate of 74% in 19 patients with advanced NHL. Thirteen patients had a complete response, and 1 patient had a partial response. GDA-201 cells were detected for up to 14 days in blood, bone marrow, and tumor tissues and maintained a favorable metabolic profile. The safety and efficacy of GDA-201 in this study support further development as a cancer therapy.

Myeloid sarcoma (MS) of the central nervous system (CNS) is a rare presentation of leukemic mass infiltration outside of the bone marrow. It may involve the subperiosteum and dura mater and, on rare occasions, can also invade the brain parenchyma. The disease is most commonly seen in children or young adults; however, it has been described in multiple age groups. MS can be seen in patients with acute myeloid leukemia (AML), chronic myeloid leukemia and other myeloproliferative disorders. This entity has the potential to be underdiagnosed if the MS appearance precedes the first diagnosis of leukemia. The main reason is that their appearance on CT and MRI has a broad differential diagnosis, and proper diagnosis of MS can only be made if the imaging findings are correlated with the clinical history and laboratory findings. Herein, we describe the intracranial CNS manifestations of MS in patients with AML on CT and MRI involving the brain and/or meninges. This study is based on a systematic review of the literature. In addition, three case reports from the author’s institution with AML and intracranial involvement of MS are included. Our aim is to enhance the awareness of this entity among both clinicians and radiologists.