Thrombopoietin Agonism to Promote Platelet Engraftment Following Hematopoietic Stem Cell Transplantation: Promising, but Not Ready for Primetime

In this issue of TCT, Fu and colleagues report the results of a randomized clinical trial conducted in China comparing thrombopoietic support using recombinant human thrombopoietin (rhTPO) with observation to promote platelet engraftment in patients receiving haploidentical hematopoietic stem cell transplantation (HSCT) with post-transplantation cyclophosphamide for the treatment of severe aplastic anemia (SAA).1 The trial enrolled 55 patients, randomized 1:1 to rhTPO or observation. The authors report successful hematopoietic reconstitution in all patients, but significantly faster platelet engraftment in patients randomized to rhTPO versus observation (median, 11 days versus 14 days, P=0.003) as well as reduced platelet transfusion requirements in the rhTPO group.
Source: Biology of Blood and Marrow Transplantation - Category: Hematology Authors: Tags: The Bottom Line Source Type: research