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If a patient is resistant to either cladribine or pentostatin, then second-line therapy is pursued.
Monoclonal antibodies The most common treatment for cladribine-resistant disease is infusing monoclonal antibodies that destroy cancerous B cells. Rituximab is by far the most commonly used. Most patients receive one IV infusion over several hours each week for four to eight weeks. A 2003 publication found two partial and ten complete responses out of 15 patients with relapsed disease, for a total of 80% responding. The median patient (including non-responders) did not require further treatment for more than three years. This eight-dose study had a higher response rate than a four-dose study at Scripps, which achieved only 25% response rate. Rituximab has successfully induced a complete response in Hairy Cell-Variant.
Rituximab's major side effect is serum sickness, commonly described as an "allergic reaction", which can be severe, especially on the first infusion. Serum sickness is primarily caused by the antibodies clumping during infusion and triggering the complement cascade. Although most patients find that side effects are adequately controlled by anti-allergy drugs, some severe, and even fatal, reactions have occurred. Consequently, the first dose is always given in a hospital setting, although subsequent infusions may be given in a physician's office. Remissions are usually shorter than with the preferred first-line drugs, but hematologic remissions of several years' duration are not uncommon.
Other B cell-destroying monoclonal antibodies such as Alemtuzumab, Ibritumomab tiuxetan and I-131 Tositumomab may be considered for refractory cases.
Interferon-alpha Interferon-alpha is an immune system hormone that is very helpful to a relatively small number of patients, and somewhat helpful to most patients. In about 65% of patients, the drug helps stabilize the disease or produce a slow, minor improvement for a partial response.
The typical dosing schedule injects at least 3 million units of Interferon-alpha (not pegylated versions) three times a week, although the original protocol began with six months of daily injections.
Some patients tolerate IFN-alpha very well after the first couple of weeks, while others find that its characteristic flu-like symptoms persist. About 10% of patients develop a level of depression. It is possible that, by maintaining a steadier level of the hormone in the body, that daily injections might cause fewer side effects in selected patients. Drinking at least two liters of water each day, while avoiding caffeine and alcohol, can reduce many of the side effects.
A drop in blood counts is usually seen during the first one to two months of treatment. Most patients find that their blood counts get worse for a few weeks immediately after starting treatment, although some patients find their blood counts begin to improve within just two weeks.
It typically takes six months to figure out whether this therapy is useful. Common criteria for treatment success include:
- normalization of hemoglobin levels (above 12.0 g/dL),
- a normal or somewhat low platelet count (above 100 K/µL), and
- a normal or somewhat low absolute neutrophil count (above 1.5 K/µL).
If it is well tolerated, patients usually take the hormone for 12 to 18 months. An attempt may be made then to end the treatment, but most patients discover that they need to continue taking the drug for it to be successful. These patients often continue taking this drug indefinitely, until either the disease becomes resistant to this hormone, or the body produces an immune system response that limits the drug's ability to function. A few patients are able to achieve a sustained clinical remission after taking this drug for six months to one year. This may be more likely when IFN-alpha has been initiated shortly after another therapy. Interferon-alpha is considered the drug of choice for pregnant women with active HCL, although it carries some risks, such as the potential for decreased blood flow to the placenta.
Interferon-alpha works by sensitizing the hairy cells to the killing effect of the immune system hormone TNF-alpha, whose production it promotes. IFN-alpha works best on classic hairy cells that are not protectively adhered to vitronectin or fibronectin, which suggests that patients who encounter less fibrous tissue in their bone marrow biopsies may be more likely to respond to Interferon-alpha therapy. It also explains why non-adhered hairy cells, such as those in the bloodstream, disappear during IFN-alpha treatment well before reductions are seen in adhered hairy cells, such as those in the bone marrow and spleen.
Splenectomy can produce long-term remissions in patients whose spleens seem to be heavily involved, but its success rate is noticeably lower than cladribine or pentostatin. Splenectomies are also performed for patients whose persistently enlarged spleens cause significant discomfort or in patients whose persistently low platelet counts suggest Idiopathic thrombocytopenic purpura.
Bone marrow transplants are usually shunned in this highly treatable disease because of the inherent risks in the procedure. They may be considered for refractory cases in younger, otherwise healthy individuals. "Mini-transplants" are possible.
People with anemia or thrombocytopenia may also receive red blood cells and platelets through blood transfusions. Blood transfusions are always irradiated to remove white blood cells and thereby reduce the risk of graft-versus-host disease. Patients may also receive a hormone to stimulate production of red blood cells. These treatments may be medically necessary, but do not kill the hairy cells.
People with low neutrophil counts may be given filgrastim or a similar hormone to stimulate production of white blood cells. However, a 1999 study indicates that routine administration of this expensive injected drug has no practical value for HCL patients after cladribine administration. In this study, patients who received filgrastim were just as likely to experience a high fever and to be admitted to the hospital as those who did not, even though the drug artificially inflated their white blood cell counts. This study leaves open the possibility that filgrastim may still be appropriate for patients who have symptoms of infection, or at times other than shortly after cladribine treatment.
Although hairy cells are technically long-lived, instead of rapidly dividing, some late-stage patients are treated with broad-spectrum chemotherapy agents such as methotrexate that are effective at killing rapidly dividing cells. This is not typically attempted unless all other options have been exhausted and it is typically unsuccessful.
Most patients with T-cell prolymphocytic leukemia require immediate treatment.
T-cell prolymphocytic leukemia is difficult to treat, and it does not respond to most available chemotherapeutic drugs. Many different treatments have been attempted, with limited success in certain patients: purine analogues (pentostatin, fludarabine, cladribine), chlorambucil, and various forms of combination chemotherapy regimens, including cyclophosphamide, doxorubicin, vincristine, prednisone (CHOP), etoposide, bleomycin (VAPEC-B).
Alemtuzumab (Campath), an anti-CD52 monoclonal antibody that attacks white blood cells, has been used in treatment with greater success than previous options. In one study of previously treated people with T-PLL, people who had a complete response to alemtuzumab survived a median of 16 months after treatment.
Some patients who successfully respond to treatment also undergo stem cell transplantation to consolidate the response.
AML-M5 is treated with intensive chemotherapy (such as anthracyclines) or with bone marrow transplantation.
Selection of biological targets on the basis of their combinatorial effects on the leukemic lymphoblasts can lead to clinical trials for improvement in the effects of ALL treatment. Tyrosine-kinase inhibitors (TKIs), such as Imatinib, are often incorporated into the treatment plan for patients with "Bcr-Abl1+ (Ph+)" ALL. However, this subtype of ALL is frequently resistant to the combination of chemotherapy and TKIs and allogeneic stem cell transplantation is often recommended upon relapse.
Blinatumomab, a CD19-CD3 bi-specific monoclonal murine antibody, currently shows promise as a novel pharmacotherapy. By engaging the CD3 T-cell with the CD19 receptor on B cells, it triggers a response to induce the release of inflammatory cytokines, cytotoxic proteins and proliferation of T cells to kill CD19 B cells.
Targeted therapy attacks cancer cells at a specific target, with the aim of not harming normal cells.
- Alemtuzumab is a mAb directed against CD52 used in CLL.
- Rituximab, ofatumumab, and obinutuzumab are antibodies against CD20 used to treat CLL.
- Ibrutinib, a Bruton's tyrosine kinase (BTK) inhibitor, is used to treat CLL.
- Idelalisib is a PI3K inhibitor. and is taken orally.
- Venetoclax is a Bcl-2 inhibitor used to treat people with CLL who have 17p deletion (deletion located on the chromosome 17 short arm) and who have been treated with at least one prior therapy.
Natural killer (NK) cell therapy is used in pediatrics for children with relapsed lymphoid leukemia. These patients normally have a resistance to chemotherapy, therefore, in order to continue on, must receive some kind of therapy. In some cases, NK cell therapy is a choice.
NK cells are known for their ability to eradicate tumor cells without any prior sensitization to them. One problem when using NK cells in order to fight off lymphoid leukemia is the fact that it is hard to amount enough of them to be effective. One can receive donations of NK cells from parents or relatives through bone marrow transplants. There are also the issues of cost, purity and safety. Unfortunately, there is always the possibility of Graft vs host disease while transplanting bone marrow.
NK cell therapy is a possible treatment for many different cancers such as Malignant glioma.
Recent case report studies suggest that treatment regimens which include a proteasome inhibitor drug, particularly bortezomib, and/or autologous stem-cell transplantation have improved pPCL survival. For example, 28 patients treated with a bortezomib-based induction regimen followed by autologous stem-cell transplantation and then a maintenance regimen of lenaldomide (an immunosuppressant related to thalidomide), bortezomib, and dexamethasone (a corticosteroid) has a progression free survival rate of 66% at 3 years and an overall survival rate of 73% at 4 years. In one study, patients receiving intensive chemotherapy plus autologous stem-cell transplantation had a median survival of 34 months while those receiving chemotherapy alone had a median survival of 11 months. Two other studies that included bortezomib in their chemotherapy regimens likewise found that the addition of autologous stem-cell transplantation improved results. Current recommendations for treating pPCL often include induction with a three drug regimen such as borezomib-lenalidomide-dexamethasone followed by autologous stem-cell transplantion and consolidation/maintenance with of combination of immunomodulator agents (e.g. thalidomide, lenalidomide, or pomalidomide) plus a proteasome inhibitor (bortezomib, ixazomib, or carfilzomib.
Chimeric antigen receptors (CARs) have been developed as a promising immunotherapy for ALL. This technology uses a single chain variable fragment (scFv) designed to recognize the cell surface marker CD19 as a method of treating ALL.
CD19 is a molecule found on all B-cells and can be used as a means of distinguishing the potentially malignant B-cell population. In this therapy, mice are immunized with the CD19 antigen and produce anti-CD19 antibodies. Hybridomas developed from mouse spleen cells fused to a myeloma cell line can be developed as a source for the cDNA encoding the CD19 specific antibody. The cDNA is sequenced and the sequence encoding the variable heavy and variable light chains of these antibodies are cloned together using a small peptide linker. This resulting sequence encodes the scFv. This can be cloned into a transgene, encoding what will become the endodomain of the CAR. Varying arrangements of subunits serve as the endodomain, but they generally consist of the hinge region that attaches to the scFv, a transmembrane region, the intracellular region of a costimulatory molecule such as CD28, and the intracellular domain of CD3-zeta containing ITAM repeats. Other sequences frequently included are: 4-1bb and OX40. The final transgene sequence, containing the scFv and endodomain sequences is then inserted into immune effector cells that are obtained from the patient and expanded "in vitro". In trials these have been a type of T-cell capable of cytotoxicity.
Inserting the DNA into the effector cell can be accomplished by several methods. Most commonly, this is done using a lentivirus that encodes the transgene. Pseudotyped, self-inactivating lentiviruses are an effective method for the stable insertion of a desired transgene into the target cell. Other methods include electroporation and transfection, but these are limited in their efficacy as transgene expression diminishes over time.
The gene-modified effector cells are then transplanted back into the patient. Typically this process is done in conjunction with a conditioning regimen such as cyclophosphamide, which has been shown to potentiate the effects of infused T-cells. This effect has been attributed to making an immunologic space within which the cells populate. The process as a whole results in an effector cell, typically a T-cell, that can recognize a tumor cell antigen in a manner that is independent of the major histocompatibility complex and which can initiate a cytotoxic response.
In 2017 tisagenlecleucel was approved by the FDA as a CAR-T therapy for acute B-cell lymphoblastic leukaemia patients who did not respond adequately to other treatments or have relapsed. In a 22-day process, the "drug" is customized for each patient. T cells purified from each patient are modified by a virus that inserts genes that encode a chimaeric antigen receptor into their DNA, one that recognizes leukemia cells.
Currently Aggressive NK-cell leukemia, being a subtype of PTCL, is treated similarly to B-cell lymphomas. However, in recent years, scientists have developed techniques to better recognize the different types of lymphomas, such as PTCL. It is now understood that PTCL behaves differently from B-cell lymphomas and therapies are being developed that specifically target these types of lymphoma. Currently, however, there are no therapies approved by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) specifically for PTCL. Anthracycline-containing chemotherapy regimens are commonly offered as the initial therapy. Some patients may receive a stem cell transplant. Novel approaches to the treatment of PTCL in the relapsed or refractory setting are under investigation.
Immunoglobulin E (IgE) is important in mast cell function. Immunotherapy with anti-IgE immunoglobulin raised in sheep resulted in a transient decrease in the numbers of circulating mast cells in one patient with mast cell leukemia. Although splenectomy has led to brief responses in patients with mast cell leukemia, no firm conclusions as to the efficacy of this treatment are possible. Chemotherapy with combination of cytosine arabinoside and either idarubicin, daunomycin, or mitoxantrone as for acute myeloid leukemia has been used. Stem cell transplantation is an option, although no experience exists concerning responses and outcome.
As the end stage of multiple myeloma that has failed or broken through one or more therapeutic regimens, sPCL continues to be highly refractory to various treatment regimens (<50%), very short response times of these regiments, and poor overall survival rates (median survival of 2-8 to months). Patients with sPCL may have short-lived responses to treatment regimens (as communicated in case reports) that include bortezomid but there are no established therapeutic regimens that have clearly been shown to improve their overall or median survival.
Autologous stem cell transplantation, using the recipient's own cells, is not curative. Younger individuals, if at high risk for dying from CLL, may consider allogeneic hematopoietic stem cell transplantation (HSCT). Myeloablative (bone marrow killing) forms of allogeneic stem cell transplantation, a high-risk treatment using blood cells from a healthy donor, may be curative, but treatment-related toxicity is significant. An intermediate level, called reduced-intensity conditioning allogeneic stem cell transplantation, may be better tolerated by older or frail patients.
If a patient has the symptoms like leukemia, such as persistent fever or difficulty of hemostais, he has to see the doctors.
BAL is very hard to treat. Most of patients receive treatment based on the morphology of blasts and get AML or ALL induction chemotherapy. The induction drug for AML such as cytarabine and anthracycline, drug for ALL such as prednisolone, dexamethasone, vincristine, asparaginase or daunorubicin is common for BAL remission induction therapy. Recently, researches showed that using both myeloid and lymphoid induction therapy may be better for prognosis.
Chemotherapy is strong side effects such as typhlitis, gastrointestinal distress, anemia, fatigue, hair loss, nausea and vomiting, etc. Thus, the different dose and times of chemotherapy for different individuals is important.
If the patients enter fully remission, the consolidation with stem cell transplantation is highly recommended.
To overcome imatinib resistance and to increase responsiveness to TK inhibitors, four novel agents were later developed. The first, dasatinib, blocks several further oncogenic proteins, in addition to more potent inhibition of the BCR-ABL protein, and was initially approved in 2007 by the US FDA to treat CML in patients who were either resistant to or intolerant of imatinib. A second new TK inhibitor, nilotinib, was also approved by the FDA for the same indication. In 2010, nilotinib and dasatinib were also approved for first-line therapy, making three drugs in this class available for treatment of newly diagnosed CML. In 2012, Radotinib joined the class of novel agents in the inhibition of the BCR-ABL protein and was approved in South Korea for patients resistant to or intolerant of imatinib. Bosutinib received US FDA and EU European Medicines Agency approval on September 4, 2012 and 27 March 2013 respectively for the treatment of adult patients with Philadelphia chromosome-positive (Ph+) chronic myelogenous leukemia (CML) with resistance, or intolerance to prior therapy.
Many different anti-cancer drugs are effective for the treatment of AML. Treatments vary somewhat according to the age of the patient and according to the specific subtype of AML. Overall, the strategy is to control bone marrow and systemic (whole-body) disease, while offering specific treatment for the central nervous system (CNS), if involved.
In general, most oncologists rely on combinations of drugs for the initial, "induction phase" of chemotherapy. Such combination chemotherapy usually offers the benefits of early remission and a lower risk of disease resistance. "Consolidation" and "maintenance" treatments are intended to prevent disease recurrence. Consolidation treatment often entails a repetition of induction chemotherapy or the intensification chemotherapy with additional drugs. By contrast, maintenance treatment involves drug doses that are lower than those administered during the induction phase.
For most people with CLL, it is incurable by present treatments, so treatment is directed towards suppressing the disease for many years, rather than totally and permanently eliminating it. The primary chemotherapeutic plan is combination chemotherapy with chlorambucil or cyclophosphamide, plus a corticosteroid such as prednisone or prednisolone. The use of a corticosteroid has the additional benefit of suppressing some related autoimmune diseases, such as immunohemolytic anemia or immune-mediated thrombocytopenia. In resistant cases, single-agent treatments with nucleoside drugs such as fludarabine, pentostatin, or cladribine may be successful. Younger and healthier patients may choose allogeneic or autologous bone marrow transplantation in the hope of a permanent cure.
Alemtuzumab has been investigated for use in treatment of refractory T-cell large granular lymphocytic leukemia.
In the past, antimetabolites (e.g., cytarabine, hydroxyurea), alkylating agents, interferon alfa 2b, and steroids were used as treatments of CML in the chronic phase, but since the 2000s have been replaced by Bcr-Abl tyrosine-kinase inhibitors drugs that specifically target BCR-ABL, the constitutively activated tyrosine kinase fusion protein caused by the Philadelphia chromosome translocation. Despite the move to replacing cytotoxic antineoplastics (standard anticancer drugs) with tyrosine kinase inhibitors sometimes hydroxyurea is still used to counteract the high leukocyte counts encountered during treatment with tyrosine kinase inhibitors like imatinib; in these situations it may be the preferred myelosuppressive agent due to its relative lack of leukemogenic effects and hence the relative lack of potential for secondary hematologic malignancies to result from treatment. IRIS, an international study that compared interferon/cytarabine combination and the first of these new drugs imatinib, with long-term follow up, demonstrated the clear superiority of tyrosine-kinase-targeted inhibition over existing treatments.
First-line treatment of AML consists primarily of chemotherapy, and is divided into two phases: induction and postremission (or consolidation) therapy. The goal of induction therapy is to achieve a complete remission by reducing the number of leukemic cells to an undetectable level; the goal of consolidation therapy is to eliminate any residual undetectable disease and achieve a cure. Hematopoietic stem cell transplantation is usually considered if induction chemotherapy fails or after a person relapses, although transplantation is also sometimes used as front-line therapy for people with high-risk disease. Efforts to use tyrosine kinase inhibitors in AML continue.
The role of chemotherapy or other pharmacologic treatments against JMML before bone marrow transplant has not been studied completely and its importance is still unknown. Chemotherapy by itself has proven unable to bring about long-term survival in JMML.
- Low-dose conventional chemotherapy: Studies have shown no influence from low-dose conventional chemotherapy on JMML patients’ length of survival. Some combinations of 6-mercaptopurine with other chemotherapy drugs have produced results such as decrease in organ size and increase or normalization of platelet and leukocyte count.
- Intensive chemotherapy: Complete remission with ongoing durability from JMML has not been possible through use of intensive chemotherapy, but it is still used at times because it has improved the condition of a small but significant number of JMML patients who do not display an aggressive disease. The COG JMML study administers 2 cycles of fludarabine and cytarabine for 5 consecutive days along with 13-cis retinoic acid during and afterwards. The EWOG-MDS JMML study, however, does not recommend intensive chemotherapy before bone marrow transplant.
- 13-cis retinoic acid (Isotretinoin): In the lab, 13-cis-retinoic acid has inhibited the growth of JMML cells. The COG JMML study therefore includes 13-cis-retinoic acid in its treatment protocol, though its therapeutic value for JMML remains controversial.
Treatment options that have been tried include zidovudine and the CHOP regimen. Pralatrexate has also been investigated. Most therapy is directed towards the cancer rather than the virus itself.
Recently, it has been reported that the traditional glucocorticoid-based chemotherapy toward ATL are largely mediated by thioredoxin binding protein-2 (TBP-2/TXNIP/VDUP1), suggesting the potential use of a TBP-2 inducer as a novel therapeutic target.
Recently, mogamulizumab, has been approved for the treatment of ATL in Japan.
At a medical conference in December 2013, researchers reported anywhere from 21-50% of ATL patients have disease expressing CD30. This suggests treatment with CD30-targeting brentuximab vedotin may be beneficial.
The theory behind splenectomy in JMML is that the spleen may trap leukemic cells, leading to the spleen's enlargement, by harboring dormant JMML cells that are not eradicated by radiation therapy or chemotherapy for the active leukemia cells, thus leading to later relapse if the spleen is not removed. However, the impact of splenectomy on post-transplant relapse, though, is unknown. The COG JMML study includes splenectomy as a standard component of treatment for all clinically stable patients. The EWOG-MDS JMML study allows each child’s physician to determine whether or not a splenectomy should be done, and large spleens are commonly removed prior to bone marrow transplant. When a splenectomy is scheduled, JMML patients are advised to receive vaccines against "Streptococcus pneumoniae" and "Haemophilus influenza" at least 2 weeks prior to the procedure. Following splenectomy, penicillin may be administered daily in order to protect the patient against bacterial infections that the spleen would otherwise have protected against; this daily preventative regimen will often continue indefinitely.
The treatment a child will undergo is based on the child's age, overall health, medical history, their tolerance for certain medications, procedures, and therapies, along with the parents' opinion and preference.
- Chemotherapy is a treatment that uses drugs to interfere with the cancer cells ability to grow and reproduce. Chemotherapy can be used alone or in combination with other therapies. Chemotherapy can be given either as a pill to swallow orally, an injection into the fat or muscle, through an IV directly into the bloodstream, or directly into the spinal column.
- A stem cell transplant is a process by which healthy cells are infused into the body. A stem-cell transplant can help the human body make enough healthy white blood cells, red blood cells, or platelets, and reduce the risk of life-threatening infections, anemia, and bleeding. It is also known as a bone-marrow transplant or an umbilical-cord blood transplant, depending on the source of the stem cells. Stem cell transplants can use the cells from the same person, called an autologous stem cell transplant or they can use stem cells from other people, known as an allogenic stem cell transplant. In some cases, the parents of a child with childhood leukemia may conceive a saviour sibling by preimplantation genetic diagnosis to be an appropriate match for the HLA antigen.
Generally, acute myeloid leukemia is treated using chemotherapy consisting of an induction phase and consolidation phase (Dohner et al., 2009). Patients may also consider hematopoietic stem cell transplantation as a second mode of tackling the cancer. The most novel research is being done in tyrosine kinase inhibitors; however M2 acute myeloid leukemia treatment research involves molecules that inhibit the fusion oncoprotein AML1-ETO. Therefore, in terms of M2 subtype acute myeloid leukemia, the most prominent target is the abnormal AML1-ETO fusion protein. Similarly, chronic myeloid leukemia (CML) is comparable to acute myeloid leukemia M2 because it also forms a fusion oncoprotein – BCR-Abl. The developed tyrosine kinase inhibitor, imatinib mesylate, has had a tremendous effect on stopping cancer progression in the majority of chronic myeloid leukemia patients. BCR-Abl is constitutively active due chromosome translocation; therefore it over-phosphorylates the tyrosine kinase. Imatinib mesylate works to block BCR-Abl’s activity by blocking the active kinase domain (Fava et al., 2011).
Celastrol is a compound extracted from Tripterygium wilfordii that has anti-cancer properties. It was found to inhibit cell proliferation through the down regulation of AML1-ETO fusion oncoprotein. Celastrol inhibits the fusion oncoprotein by inducing mitochondrial instability and initiating caspase activity The decrease of AML1-ETO also results in lower levels of C-KIT kinases, Akt/PKB, STAT3, and Erk1/2 – all of which are involved in cell signaling and gene transcription (Yu et al., 2016).
Histone deacetylase inhibitors such as valproic acid (VPA), vorinostat, and all-trans retinoic acid (ATRA) are effective in targeting acute myeloid leukemia with the AML1-ETO fusion protein. The HDAC inhibitors are known to induce apoptosis through accumulation of DNA damage, inhibition of DNA repair, and activation of caspases. These inhibitors are extra sensitive to the fusion proteins. Vorinostat has been proven to cause a greater accumulation of DNA damage in fusion protein expressing cells and is directly correlated with the reduction of DNA repair enzymes (Garcia et al., 2008). Romidepsin, a drug in phase two clinical trials, has demonstrated higher efficacy in patients with AML1-ETO fusion protein leukemia (Odenike et al., 2008). Although many clinical evaluations have proven HDAC inhibitors have a promising effect on M2 subtype acute myeloid leukemia, it has not been approved as an official treatment.
In t(6;9) acute myeloid leukemia, FLT3-ITD and the DEK-NUP214 protein are potential targets for treatment. Sorafenib is a kinase inhibitor used as a treatment for kidney and liver cancer. The kinase inhibitor blocks serine-threonine kinase RAF-1 as well as FLT-ITD (Kindler, 2010). The drug has been proven to be effective in reducing FLT3-ITD overexpression (Metzelder et al., 2009). In patients with DEK-NUP214, it was found that the fusion oncoprotein caused an upregulation of mTORC1 (Sanden et al., 2013). Thus, a mTORC inhibitor could be a potential treatment.