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Published on: October 1, 2012
Course of Crohn's disease after allogeneic marrow transplantation
S O Lopez-Cubero1, K M Sullivan, G B McDonald
1Clinical Research Division, Fred Hutchinson Cancer Research Center, and University of Washington School of Medicine, Seattle 98109-1024, USA.
Insights
Allogeneic hematopoietic cell transplantation (HCT) can induce long-term remission in Crohn's disease. Four of five patients remained disease-free for over 4.5 years post-HCT, suggesting immune dysregulation correction.
Area of Science:
- Immunology
- Gastroenterology
- Hematology
Background:
- Crohn's disease (CD) is an autoimmune disorder.
- Allogeneic marrow transplantation has induced remission in various autoimmune diseases.
- The study investigated if allogeneic hematopoietic cell transplantation (HCT) alters Crohn's disease progression.
Observation:
- Six patients with Crohn's disease and leukemia received allogeneic HCT between 1982 and 1992.
- Five patients had active CD and three had sclerosing cholangitis pre-transplant.
- Donors included HLA-identical siblings, a DR-mismatched relative, and an HLA-matched unrelated donor.
Findings:
- Four of five patients observed for 4.5 to 15.3 years achieved sustained remission from Crohn's disease.
- One patient with mixed chimerism relapsed 1.5 years post-transplant.
- One patient died of septicemia 97 days post-transplant.
Implications:
- Host immune dysregulation is implicated in Crohn's disease pathogenesis.
- Allogeneic HCT may offer a curative approach for refractory Crohn's disease.
- Further research into HCT for autoimmune conditions is warranted.
Background & Aims:
Remission of several autoimmune diseases has been described after allogeneic marrow transplantation. The aim of this study was to determine if the natural history of Crohn's disease was altered by hematopoietic cell transplants from healthy allogeneic donors.
Methods:
Between 1982 and 1992, 6 patients with Crohn's disease and leukemia underwent allogeneic marrow transplantation and were followed up clinically.
Results:
Five patients had active Crohn's disease before transplantation, and 3 had clinical evidence of sclerosing cholangitis. Four marrow donors were HLA-identical siblings, 1 related donor was mismatched at the DR locus, and 1 unrelated donor was HLA-matched. One patient died of septicemia 97 days after transplantation; 5 patients were observed for 4.5, 5.8, 8.4, 9.9, and 15.3 years after transplantation. Four of 5 patients evaluated had no signs or symptoms of Crohn's disease after transplantation. One patient with mixed donor-host hematopoietic chimerism had a relapse of Crohn's disease 1.5 years after transplantation.
Conclusions:
Four of 5 patients followed up for 4.5 to 15.3 years after allogeneic hematopoietic cell transplantation remained free of Crohn's disease. These observations suggest that host immune dysregulation plays a role in the perpetuation of Crohn's disease that can be corrected by allogeneic hematopoietic cell transplantation.
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