The "CSCO Leukemia Expert Committee, Lymphoma Expert Committee and Myeloma Preparatory Committee Working Meeting and 2024 CSCO Academic Conference on Hematology, Lymphoma and Myeloma Diseases" was officially opened in Haikou on January 26, 2024. The congress covers a wide range of hematology branches including leukemia, myeloma, and lymphoma. As a common complication after hematopoietic stem cell transplantation, acute graft-versus-host disease (aGVHD) has been the focus of attention in the field of hematology. In April 2023, the innovative drug ruxolitinib was officially approved for the treatment of SR-aGVHD patients and successfully entered the national medical insurance list, providing domestic blood transplant patients with highly efficient and accessible aGVHD treatment drugs. In order to celebrate this important moment, the aGVHD post-medical insurance expert seminar and medical insurance approval celebration was held on the morning of January 26. Many authoritative experts and professors in China attended the conference to congratulate the approval of medical insurance, and also shared their experience in the use of ruxolitinib, and put forward very valuable opinions on how to maximize the application value of ruxolitinib in clinical practice.
01
Double Survival, Change Life - Celebration of the approval of aGVHD medical insurance
Professor Ma Jun from Harbin Institute of Hematology and Oncology, Professor Wu Depei from the First Affiliated Hospital of Soochow University, and Professor Liu Kaiyan from the Institute of Hematology of Peking University were invited to be the chairmen of the conference. The three chairmen first expressed their warm congratulations on the successful entry of ruxolitinib into the medical insurance. The chairmen said that in recent years, allogeneic hematopoietic stem cell transplantation in mainland China has been developing in a "blowout", but GVhD has always been a difficult problem to face after allogeneic hematopoietic stem cell transplantation, and traditional hormone therapy is easy to cause drug resistance and increase the risk of transplant failure. Ruxolitinib is the first drug approved for the treatment of hormone-resistant aGVHD (SR-aGVHD), revolutionizing the treatment landscape in the field of SR-aGVHD. The successful entry of ruxolitinib into the medical insurance list not only directly reduces the economic burden of transplant patients, but also helps to improve the success rate of transplantation and promote the development of the entire transplant field. In order to commemorate this important moment, under the chairmanship of Professor Zhang Xiaohui of the Institute of Hematology of Peking University, all the experts present jointly promoted the putter in their hands to celebrate the successful entry of ruxolitinib into medical insurance and start a new journey in the field of blood transplantation.
Professor Ma Jun delivered a speech
Professor Wu Depei delivered a speech
Professor Liu Kaiyan delivered a speech
Professor Zhang Xiaohui presided over the meeting
Group photo of participating experts
02
Acute graft-versus-host disease: mechanism, diagnosis and treatment
Under the chairmanship of Professor Chen Suning from the First Affiliated Hospital of Soochow University, Professor Sun Zimin from the First Affiliated Hospital of the University of Science and Technology of China shared the current status and prospect exploration of diagnosis and treatment in the field of aGVHD. Professor Sun Zimin said that with the progress of medical science and technology, the prevention and diagnosis of aGVHD have made great progress, but there are still certain limitations and unmet needs for the treatment of aGVHD in China. Hormone therapy is the first-line treatment for aGVHD, and about 50% of patients develop hormone resistance. However, the traditional second-line treatment regimen has limitations such as insufficient high-level evidence-based evidence and effective efficacy.
The JAK inhibitor ruxolitinib can downregulate JAK1-mediated pro-inflammatory cytokines by inhibiting JAK1 and JAK2 kinases, reducing T cell expansion and Treg development, thereby reducing host damage. This provides a new way of thinking for the treatment of aGVHD. The efficacy of ruxolitinib in the treatment of aGVHD has also been validated in the REACH I and REACH II studies and subsequent meta-analyses. Based on this definitive evidence, ruxolitinib for the treatment of aGVHD was also approved in the United States in 2019 and in Europe in 2022.
Professor Sun Zimin's special report
A meta-analysis of Chinese patients with aGVHD showed that the overall response rate of Chinese patients with SR-aGVHD receiving ruxolitinib (or a combination regimen containing ruxolitinib) was as high as 86%, and patients with different organ involvement had good clinical benefits. Based on this, in April 2023, the National Medical Products Administration (NMPA) officially granted accelerated approval for ruxolitinib for the treatment of patients aged 12 years and older with aGVHD who have not responded adequately to glucocorticoids or other systemic therapies. Ruxolitinib has also become the first and only medical insurance drug approved for the treatment of this disease in China, bringing good news to the majority of patients.
The approval of ruxolitinib for the indication of aGVHD has increased the treatment options for patients with hormone resistance, and has also brought significant changes to the second-line treatment pattern of aGVHD in China. For the second-line treatment of aGVHD after the approval of ruxolitinib, under the chairmanship of Professor Jiang Erlie of the Institute of Hematology, Chinese Academy of Medical Sciences, Professor Chen Xiaowei of Guangzhou First People's Hospital, Professor Fu Yuewen of Henan Cancer Hospital, Professor Hu Jiong of Ruijin Hospital Affiliated to Shanghai Jiao Tong University School of Medicine, Professor Jiang Ming of the First Affiliated Hospital of Xinjiang Medical University, Professor Li Xiaofan of Union Hospital Affiliated to Fujian Medical University, Professor Li Yuhua of Zhujiang Hospital of Southern Medical University, Professor Liang Zhenyin of Peking University First Hospital, Professor Wang Huafang from Union Hospital Affiliated to Tongji Medical College of Huazhong University of Science and Technology, Professor Wang Sanbin from the 920th Hospital of the Joint Logistics Support Force of the Chinese People's Liberation Army, Professor Wu Tong from Beijing Gaobo Boren Hospital and Professor Zhang Yicheng from Tongji Hospital affiliated to Tongji Medical College of Huazhong University of Science and Technology shared their views. Professor Zhong said that in the past, basiliximab was the main second-line treatment for aGVHD, but ruxolitinib has a significant improvement in the skin symptoms of aGVHD, and it is also effective in combination with other drugs for intestinal aGVHD. A number of centers are already experimenting with ruxolitinib as a first-line treatment for aGVHD.
03
The latest guidelines recommend new treatment options for SR-aGVHD
Clinical guidelines have always been an important basis for clinicians to diagnose and treat diseases, and with the deepening of research on aGVHD, the recommendations of clinical guidelines for the treatment of aGVHD are constantly updated. Under the introduction of Professor Liu Qiqi from Nanfang Hospital of Southern Medical University, Professor Jin Hua from Nanfang Hospital of Southern Medical University shared the updated guideline recommendations and clinical experience of SR-aGVHD treatment. Professor Jin Hua said that due to the lack of drugs with clear efficacy, there is no clear recommendation for the treatment of SR-aGVHD in the previous European Association for Bone Marrow Transplantation and Hematopoietic Stem Cell Transplantation (EBMT) guidelines. With the release of the pivotal Phase II and III clinical studies of ruxolitinib and the further exploration of a large number of subsequent real-world studies, at the EBMT conference held in April 2023, the panel unanimously approved the proposal of "highly recommending ruxolitinib for the treatment of patients with SR-aGVHD". In the NCCN guidelines of the National Comprehensive Cancer Network, ruxolitinib is also recommended as a class 1 drug for SR-aGVHD based on high-quality evidence.
Professor Jin Hua shared the content
In addition, Professor Jinhua also shared a retrospective study conducted by Nanfang Hospital on the clinical efficacy of ruxolitinib compared with basiliximab. The study found that ruxolitinib can provide more significant disease remission and survival improvement in patients with SR-aGVHD than basiliximab. And the dose of 10 mg twice a day is more beneficial in reducing the cumulative incidence of chronic graft-versus-host disease (cGVHD).
For the experience of ruxolitinib and the exploration of future directions, under the chairmanship of Professor Niu Ting from West China Hospital of Sichuan University, experts also expressed their views. Professor Liu Qiqi said: In the past three years, the preferred treatment regimen for aGVHD in Nanfang Hospital has recommended ruxolitinib or ruxolitinib combined with basiliximab. In terms of dose selection, 10 mg twice a day is more advantageous in the long run. In this regard, Professor Zhang Yicheng also said that for the treatment of aGVHD, a large number of clinical data in the hospital show that the effect of ruxolitinib is indeed better than that of basiliximab. It is expected that ruxolitinib can continue to explore in the field of aGVHD and expand more combination regimens and related indications.
04
We will continue to work hard and keep our lives, and look forward to ruxolitinib continuing to cultivate in the field of blood and achieve better results
The lively discussion of the experts pushed the meeting to a climax. Professor Liu Kaiyan, Chairman of the conference, concluded that the efficacy of ruxolitinib in the treatment of aGVHD is now relatively certain, and the approval of this medical insurance will further promote the clinical access of more patients and escort the life safety of transplant patients. In addition, Professor Liu once again expressed his expectation for ruxolitinib to continue to develop and boldly practice in the field of hematology. It is expected that ruxolitinib can continue to be deeply cultivated in the field of hematology, expand more indications, and bring more benefits to patients with hematological diseases in mainland China.
The approval code JAK0017244-45929, valid until 2025-01-28, the information expires and is deemed invalid
:Port :Vitalis :Gloria 行:Eve
This platform aims to deliver more medical information to healthcare professionals. The content published on this platform should not be used as a substitute for professional medical guidance in any way, nor should it be regarded as diagnosis and treatment advice. If such information is used for purposes other than understanding medical information, the platform does not assume relevant responsibilities. This platform does not mean that it agrees with its descriptions and views on the published content. If copyright issues are involved, please contact us, and we will deal with it as soon as possible.