Multicenter retrospective study of allogeneic stem cell transplantation for adult Ph+ALL with complete molecular remission

A multicenter retrospective study in Japan evaluated allogeneic stem cell transplantation (alloSCT) for patients with Philadelphia chromosome-positive acute lymphoblastic leukemia (Ph+ALL) in first complete remission (CR1) who achieved complete molecular remission (CMR) within 3 months. Among 147 patients, 101 underwent alloSCT and 46 did not. In multivariate analyses, alloSCT was associated with better overall survival (aHR 0.54; p=0.04) and relapse-free survival (aHR 0.21; p<0.001). The 5-year adjusted OS and RFS were 73% and 70% in the alloSCT cohort, whereas they were 50% and 20%in the non-alloSCT cohort. In addition, alloSCT was associated with superior GVHD-free, relapse-free survival (aHR 0.43; p=0.002). The authors conclude that among Ph+ALL patients who achieved CMR within 3 months, alloSCT in CR1 was associated with superior survival and lower relapse rate.