Relationship between graft-versus-host disease and graft-versus-leukaemia in partial T cell-depleted bone marrow transplantation

The success of allogeneic bone marrow transplantation (BMT) is limited by the major complications, graft-versus-host disease (GVHD) and relapse. The very beneficial effect of maximal T-cell depletion of the graft for prevention of GVHD has been counterbalanced by an increase in graft failure and relapse of disease. Therefore, we started an approach of partial T-cell depletion of the graft. GVHD and graft-versus-leukaemia (GVL) are strongly correlated after non-T cell-depleted BMT. Here, we report whether the correlation between GVHD and GVL also exists in partial T cell-depleted BMT from sibling donors. We retrospectively studied 117 adult patients with early haematological malignancies. Our method of partial T-cell depletion gave a relapse rate in patients with acute leukaemias similar to that observed in non-T cell-depleted BMT. However, patients with chronic myeloid leukaemia had a relapse rate that was similar to that observed in maximal T cell-depleted BMT. We found a significant correlation between the presence of chronic GVHD and an improved disease-free survival. Nevertheless, overall survival was lower in patients with chronic GVHD. There was no correlation between the occurrence of acute GVHD and disease-free or overall survival.