The role of allogeneic stem cell transplantation in acute myeloid leukemia with translocation t(8;16)(p11;p13)

Acute myeloid leukemia (AML) with translocation t(8;16)(p11;p13) represents a rare entity that has been categorized as a disease-defining recurring cytogenetic abnormality with adverse risk in the 2022 European LeukemiaNet classification. This rating was mainly based on a retrospective analysis comprising patients from several large clinical trials, which, however, included only 21 patients treated with allogeneic stem cell transplantation (alloSCT). Therefore, the European Society for Blood and Marrow Transplantation performed a registry study on a larger cohort to evaluate the role of alloSCT in t(8;16) AML. Sixty transplant recipients with t(8;16) AML were identified. Two-year overall and leukemia-free survival (OS/LFS) was 43/39%. Patients transplanted in first complete remission (CR1, n = 44) achieved a 2-year OS/LFS of 48%/48%. Following alloSCT in CR1, the multivariable analysis identified a complex karyotype (CK) as a major risk factor for relapse (HR 4.17, p =.016), lower LFS (HR 3.38, p =.01), and lower OS (HR 3.08, p =.017). Two-year OS/LFS of patients with CK was 19%/19%, in contrast to 67%/67% in patients with t(8;16) outside a CK. Other factors for inferior outcomes were older age and secondary AML. In summary, alloSCT could mitigate the adverse risk of patients with t(8;16) AML not harboring a CK, particularly when performed in CR1.