Management of immune-related adverse events resulting from immune checkpoint blockade

Introduction: Immune checkpoint inhibitors (ICI) are now a standard of care in the treatment of many cancers leading to durable responses in patients with metastatic disease. These agents are generally well tolerated but may lead to the occurrence of immune-related adverse events (irAEs). As any organ may be affected, clinicians should be aware of the broad range of clinical manifestations and symptoms and keep in mind that toxicities may occur late, at any point along a patient’s treatment course. Although the most common irAEs are rarely severe, some of them may be associated with great morbidity and even become life-threatening. The rate of occurrence, type and severity of irAEs may vary with the type of ICI; thus, grade 3 and 4 irAEs are reported in more than 55% of patients treated with the combination of ipilimumab 3 mg/kg and nivolumab 1 mg/kg.

Area covered: This review presents the management of irAEs resulting from checkpoint blockade, with a focus on rare irAEs.

Expert commentary: With the development of immuno-oncology and the expanding role of ICI, physicians have learnt to diagnose and treat most of the irAEs that can occur. This review provides an overview of current guidelines, previously published studies and our multidisciplinary team based practices.     

Relapsing Myopathy With Granulomatous Inflammation as Chronic Graft vs Host Disease Feature: A Case Report

BackgroundGraft-vs-host disease (GVHD) is a common complication of allogeneic hematopoietic stem cell transplant. Myopathy is a rare neuromuscular sign of chronic GVHD, with an incidence of less than 4% in all patients. The data are heterogeneous, and no standard criteria exists for diagnosis or treatment.Case ReportWe present the case of an 18-year-old man with acute lymphoblastic leukemia, who developed myopathy associated with GVHD 19 months after allogeneic hematopoietic stem cell transplant from an unrelated donor. The patient had a previous history of acute cutaneous and chronic hepatic GVHD. At the time of symptom onset, the immunosuppressive drugs were tapered. He developed with sudden symmetrical proximal muscle weakness that prevented him from walking. Diagnosis was confirmed using magnetic resonance imaging, electromyography, muscle enzymes, and muscle biopsy results. He initially responded to immunosuppressive therapy but relapsed after quick tapering of prednisone, requiring a prolonged course of steroids and an additional dose of immune globulin intravenous. At the moment of the publication, the patient has 9 months free from GVHD relapse.ConclusionsGVHD-associated myopathy is a rare complication of hematopoietic stem cell transplant and must be suspected in patients with sudden proximal muscle weakness and moderate pain. Diagnosis is challenging and must include magnetic resonance imaging, electromyography, muscle enzymes, and muscle biopsy results. Usually, all patients respond adequately to immunosuppression.     

Coronary Artery Embolism: Two Case Reports and a Review of the Literature

Coronary embolism (CE) is an uncommon and unique cause of acute myocardial infarction. In this report, we review 216 cases of CE including 2 new cases from our institution. The mean patient age was 52.5 years and 62% of the patients were males. Chest pain was the most common presenting symptom followed by dyspnea, and the most commonly affected vessel was the left anterior descending artery. Leading etiologies of the embolus were atrial fibrillation, septic emboli, and iatrogenic causes. Treatment approaches varied with thrombus aspiration being used in 30% of cases. In-hospital mortality rate was 36% and 13% of the cases were complicated by cerebrovascular accident. CE is a unique pathology that leads to acute myocardial infarction. It portends a high mortality rate and requires a high level of suspicion as symptoms may be misleading. Further research is needed in order to improve recognition and management and to lower associated mortality.     

社区与家庭一体化管理模式在农村地区冠心病二级预防中的探索

目的 探索建立一种以助理全科医师为主体，社区卫生服务中心与患者家庭对冠心病出院患者进行连续性管理,适合现阶段农村基层医疗卫生条件的冠心病二级预防新模式。 方法 将2016年6月—2017年6月在北京市延庆区医院确诊的100例冠心病患者作为实验组纳入“社区与家庭一体化管理”模式进行冠心病二级预防管理并随访12个月,回顾前1年(2015年6月—2016年6月)在北京市延庆区医院确诊的100例冠心病患者二级预防效果为对照组,就2组患者对冠心病知识知晓率(问卷调查)、循证药物治疗的依从性(家属对患者服药种类及次数进行记录)、冠心病危险因素(每3个月测量1次血压、血糖、血脂、体重及戒烟率)的控制及不良心血管事件发生率进行对比研究。 结果 经“社区与家庭一体化管理”模式进行冠心病二级预防的患者,对冠心病知识掌握率为74%(对照组为38%)、服药依从性为88%(对照组为46%)均明显提高(均P<0.05)；吸烟、控制体重等不良生活方式改善不明显(P>0.05)，低密度脂蛋白、血压、血糖等指标较入院时显著改善(均P<0.05)，2组不良心血管事件发生率比较差异无统计学意义(P>0.05)。 结论 “社区与家庭一体化管理”冠心病二级预防模式保障了对出院患者的连续性管理,明显提升冠心病患者对所患疾病的认识,有效控制冠心病危险因素，提高循症药物治疗的依从性。