Haploidentical versus matched sibling donors for allogeneic hematopoietic stem cell transplantation in patients with acute myeloid leukemia 

This study aimed to compare outcomes for allogeneic hematopoietic stem cell transplantation (alloHSCT) using haploidentical and matched sibling donors in patients with acute myeloid leukemia (AML). 

This study concluded that both donor types provided similar outcomes for these patients.  

Allogeneic hematopoietic stem cell transplantation (allo-HSCT) is an effective and curative treatment for acute myeloid leukemia (AML). It involves transplanting stem cells from a donor to the patient after treatment to kill cancer cells. A haploidentical donor (HID) is a half-match donor (this can be the patient's parent or child). A matched sibling donor (MSD) is normally the best option. However, a MSD is not available for every patient. 

It was unknown if HID would give the same outcomes as an MSD for patients with AML who undergo allo-HSCT. 

This study involved 127 patients with intermediate-risk AML in first complete remission (CR1). All patients underwent allo-HSCT. 37 patients used MSD and 90 patients used HID.  

The 2-year leukemia-free survival (LFS) of the HID group was 82% compared to 82.7% for the MSD group. After 2 years, 4.5% of the HID group had relapsed compared to 11.5% of the MSD group.   

Graft versus host disease (GVHD) is a complication that occurs after allo-HSCT. It means that the transplanted cells attack the tissues of the patient. Short-term GVHD at 100 days occurred in 30% of the HID group compared to 5.4% of the MDS group. However, long-term GVHD at 2 years occurred in 25.1% of the HID group compared to 45.6% of the MDS group. 

This study concluded that the outcomes of allo-HSCT with HID are similar to those with MSD for patients with intermediate-risk AML. The authors suggested that HID could be an alternative for patients who do not have an identical MSD. 

Patients in this study were not randomly assigned to each group. Also, patients in the HID group had a longer time until they got their transplant. This could have influenced the results.