Zinc is an essential micronutrient which is involved in many physiological processes in the human body including immune system regulation, cellular survival, neurologic function, and erythropoiesis. Therefore, a wide range of clinical manifestations can be associated with zinc deficiency, such as impaired immune function, dermatologic findings, and decreased growth. Another significant, yet often underrecognized, manifestation of zinc deficiency is anemia. This review discusses the pathophysiology leading to zinc deficiency-associated anemia, highlighting zinc’s role in erythropoiesis, heme biosynthesis, and red blood cell stability. It also outlines various populations which are more at risk for developing zinc deficiency-associated anemia as identifying these groups can aid clinicians to improve screening, especially in patients with unexplained or refractory anemia. Numerous trials in selected populations have demonstrated significant improvement in anemia following zinc supplementation. However, additional studies are critical in order to streamline screening guidelines and establish optimal zinc supplementation dosing. This review aims to increase awareness of zinc deficiency’s contribution to anemia in order to improve screening and clinical outcomes for patients.

Background/Objectives: Lisocabtagene maraleucel (liso-cel) is a CD19-directed chimeric antigen receptor T-cell (CAR-T) therapy approved for relapsed or refractory large B-cell lymphoma (R/R LBCL). However, most published meta-analyses of CAR-T therapy in LBCL pool data across products, limiting product-specific interpretation. Methods: We conducted a systematic review and meta-analysis of clinical trials and retrospective real-world studies evaluating liso-cel monotherapy in R/R LBCL. The primary endpoint was the overall response rate (ORR). Secondary endpoints included complete response (CR), incidence of grade ≥ 3 adverse events, including cytokine release syndrome (CRS) and immune effector cell-associated neurotoxicity syndrome (ICANS), overall mortality rate (OMR), disease progression-related mortality, and adverse event-related mortality. Pooled proportions were estimated using random-effects models. Results: Eleven studies including 1206 patients were analyzed, comprising five clinical trials and six real-world retrospective cohorts. The pooled ORR was 78%, and the pooled CR rate was 60%. The pooled OMR was 38%, with a disease progression-related mortality of 28% and an adverse event-related mortality of 4%. Severe (grade ≥ 3) CRS and ICANS occurred in 2% and 8%, respectively. Severe (grade ≥ 3) hematologic toxicities were frequent, particularly neutropenia, thrombocytopenia, and anemia. Conclusions: Liso-cel monotherapy demonstrated high pooled response rates and low pooled incidences of severe CRS and ICANS across clinical trials and real-world settings in R/R LBCL. Severe ICANS, although uncommon, remains clinically meaningful, and severe hematologic toxicities were frequent and warrant careful monitoring and supportive care. These findings provide product-specific benchmarks for liso-cel in R/R LBCL.

Zinc is an essential micronutrient involved in many physiological processes in the human body, including immune system regulation, cellular survival, neurologic function, and erythropoiesis. Zinc deficiency can result in a wide range of clinical manifestations, including impaired immune function, dermatologic findings, and decreased growth. Anemia has been reported as a hematologic manifestation of zinc deficiency and may be underrecognized in clinical practice. This narrative review examines the pathophysiology of zinc deficiency-associated anemia, highlighting zinc’s role in erythropoiesis, heme biosynthesis, and red blood cell stability. It also outlines populations at increased risk for zinc deficiency, including patients with chronic kidney disease, sickle cell disease, malabsorptive disorders, chronic proton pump inhibitor use, and older adults. Emerging evidence suggests that zinc deficiency-associated anemia may represent a potentially modifiable contributor to anemia in selected at-risk populations, although the strength of evidence varies across clinical settings and study designs. Assessment of zinc status may be considered in patients with unexplained or refractory anemia and additional risk factors for deficiency. Further prospective studies are needed to clarify the role of zinc deficiency in anemia and define appropriate screening, supplementation, and monitoring strategies.