Skip to main content

Thank you for visiting nature.com. You are using a browser version with limited support for CSS. To obtain the best experience, we recommend you use a more up to date browser (or turn off compatibility mode in Internet Explorer). In the meantime, to ensure continued support, we are displaying the site without styles and JavaScript.

  • Letter to the Editor
  • Published:

Reply to ‘Efficacy and safety of low-dose alemtuzumab as treatment of autoimmune hemolytic anemia in pretreated B-cell chronic lymphocytic leukemia’ by Dr Laurenti et al.

Leukemia volume 21, page 1821 (2007)Cite this article

I have read with interest the letter from Dr Laurenti et al.1 published in Leukemia, which describes three patients with CLL-associated autoimmune hemolytic anemia (AIHA) responding after alemtuzumab therapy. These results substantiate our own observations.2 A significant issue is that only 10 mg, rather than the 30 mg often administered thrice weekly, demonstrated clinical efficacy with low toxicity. On the other hand, 5–8 weeks of alemtuzumab therapy was needed for improvement of the AIHA, instead of 3–5 weeks noted in our report published in Leukemia January 2007. Median treatment duration was 12 weeks compared to the 5 weeks in our report, and yet the AIHA response duration was 9–26 months.

We do not know the optimal dose of alemtuzumab, but Dr Hale reported in 20043 that it takes a longer time to detect alemtuzumab in serum after subcutaneous delivery compared to intravenous administration. Lower dose of alemtuzumab should perhaps be administered over a protracted period to maximize efficacy and ameliorate toxicity.

This is a preview of subscription content, access via your institution

Access options

Buy this article

  • Purchase on Springer Link
  • Instant access to full article PDF
Buy now

Prices may be subject to local taxes which are calculated during checkout

References

  1. Laurenti L, Tarnani M, Efremov DG, Chiusolo P, De Padua L, Sica S et al. Efficacy and safety of low-dose alemtuzumab as treatment of autoimmune hemolytic anemia in pretreated B-cell chronic lymphocytic leukemia. Leukemia 2007, in press.

  2. Karlsson C, Hansson H, Celsing F, Lundin J . Treatment of severe refractory autoimmune hemolytic anemia (AIHA) in B-cell chronic lymphocytic leukemia (B-CLL) with alemtuzumab humanized CD52 monoclonal antibody. Leukemia 2007; 21: 511–514.

    Article  CAS  Google Scholar 

  3. Hale G, Rebello P, Brettman L, Fegan C, Kennedy B, Kimby E et al. Blood concentrations of alemtuzumab and antiglobulin responses in patients with chronic lymphocytic leukemia following intravenous or subcutaneous routes of administration. Blood 2004; 104: 948–955.

    Article  CAS  Google Scholar 

Download references

Author information

Authors and Affiliations

  1. Department of Oncology, Karolinska University Hospital Solna, Stockholm, Sweden E-mail: jeanette.lundin@ki.se,

    J Lundin

Authors
  1. J Lundin
    View author publications

    You can also search for this author in PubMed Google Scholar

Rights and permissions

Reprints and permissions

About this article

Cite this article

Lundin, J. Reply to ‘Efficacy and safety of low-dose alemtuzumab as treatment of autoimmune hemolytic anemia in pretreated B-cell chronic lymphocytic leukemia’ by Dr Laurenti et al.. Leukemia 21, 1821 (2007). https://doi.org/10.1038/sj.leu.2404704

Download citation

  • Published:

  • Issue Date:

  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1038/sj.leu.2404704

Search

Advanced search

Quick links