Highlights from the SWG

  • AML SWG organized the Annual Scientific SWG meeting held during the annual EHA congress. At the EHA 2021 congress our session focused on targeting TP53 in MDS and AML. This session provided a comprehensive overview, starting with basic biological considerations, highlighted the importance of genetic alterations and finished with the clinical implications.
  • At the 2022 Congress, our Annual Scientific SWG meeting provided an enlightening discussion on germline predisposition gene mutations in AML, a topic with increasing importance to the hematologic community.
  • Another planned highlight was the organization of our joint MPN/MDS/AML meeting together with the SWG MDS and SWG MPN which was initially scheduled for 2021. However, this meeting had to be postponed due to the COVID-19 Pandemic. We are now looking forward to this 2-and-a-half-day meeting which has been rescheduled for November 2-4, 2024 in Budapest.
  • From August 28 to September 3, 2022 the Spetses Summer School INTERCEPT-MDS was held in Greece. This basic research meeting offered an intensive mentoring program for up to 100 junior researchers and was co-organized by members of the SWG MDS and SWG AML.
  • In 2022, the new international consensus classification (ICC), as well as the up-dated WHO classification on AML have been published with the participation of selected SWG AML members
  • In 2022, the 2017 ELN recommendations for AML have been updated and were published in Blood, again with participation of a number of members from our SWG AML. Both initiatives represent relevant and significant advancements in the field of AML.

The most relevant and impactful activities of our SWG

  • Current ongoing and important activities with the participation of numerous SWG AML members are several HARMONY Projects: i) measurable residual disease as surrogate marker for survival in AML (PI: Gert Ossenkoppele); ii) optimizing APL management using big data (PI: Maria Teresa Voso), iii) big data to evaluate the clinical impact of genomic alterations (PI: Lars Bullinger). Here, first results have been presented at the ASH 2022 meeting and further studies are ongoing

Alberto Hernández Sánchez, MD1,2*, Angela Villaverde Ramiro2,3*, Eric Sträng, PhD4*, Castellani Gastone, PhD5*, Caroline A. Heckman, PhD6, Jurjen Versluis, MD, PhD7*, María Abáigar3,8*, Marta Anna Sobas, MD, PhD9*, Raúl Azibeiro Melchor10*, Axel Benner11*, Peter JM Valk, PhD12, Klaus H Metzeler, MD13, Teresa González, PhD2,3*, Daniele Dall'Olio, PhD14*, Jesse M. Tettero15*, Javier Martinez Elicegui2,3*, Joaquín Martínez-López, MD, PhD16*, Marta Pratcorona, MD17*, Frederik Damm, MD18*, Ken I Mills, BSc, PhD, FRCPath19, Christian Thiede, MD20, Maria Teresa Voso, MD21, Guillermo Sanz, MD, PhD22,23, Konstanze Döhner, MD24, Michael Heuser, MD25, Torsten Haferlach, MD26, Amin T. Turki, MD27, Rubén Villoria Medina28*, Michel van Speybroeck, MSc29*, Renate Schulze-Rath30*, Martje Barbus, PhD31*, John E Butler32*, Jesús María Hernández-Rivas, MD, PhD1,2,3, Brian Huntly, MB ChB, FRCPath, FMedSci, PhD33, Gert Ossenkoppele, MD34, Hartmut Döhner, MD35 and Lars Bullinger, MD36 

Machine Learning Allows the Identification of New Co-Mutational Patterns with Prognostic Implications in NPM1 Mutated AML – Results of the European Harmony Alliance, oral presentation ASH December 10, 2022, abstract #304

Alberto Hernández Sánchez, MD1,2*, Teresa González, PhD2,3*, Marta Anna Sobas, MD, PhD4*, Eric Sträng, PhD5*, Castellani Gastone, PhD6*, María Abáigar3,7*, Peter JM Valk, PhD8, Angela Villaverde Ramiro2,3*, Axel Benner9*, Klaus H Metzeler, MD10, Jesse M. Tettero11*, Joaquín Martínez-López, MD, PhD12*, Marta Pratcorona, MD13*, Javier Martinez Elicegui2,3*, Ken I Mills, BSc, PhD, FRCPath14, Christian Thiede, MD15, Guillermo Sanz, MD, PhD16,17, Konstanze Döhner, MD18, Michael Heuser, MD19, Torsten Haferlach, MD20, Amin T. Turki, MD21, Dirk Reinhardt, MD22, Renate Schulze-Rath23*, Martje Barbus, PhD24*, Jesús María Hernández-Rivas, MD, PhD1,2,3, Brian Huntly, MB ChB, FRCPath, FMedSci, PhD25, Gert Ossenkoppele, MD26, Hartmut Döhner, MD27 and Lars Bullinger, MD28

Rearrangements Involving 11q23/KMT2A: Mutational Landscape and Prognostic Implications – Results of the Harmony Alliance AML Database, oral presentation, ASH December 10, 2022, abstract # 227

Marta Anna Sobas, MD, PhD1*, Angela Villaverde Ramiro2*, Alberto Hernández Sánchez, MD3*, Javier Martinez Elicegui2*, Teresa González, PhD4*, Raúl Azibeiro Melchor5*, María Abáigar6*, Laura Tur7*, Daniele Dall'Olio, PhD8*, Eric Sträng, PhD9*, Jesse M. Tettero10*, Castellani Gastone, PhD11*, Axel Benner12*, Konstanze Döhner, MD13, Christian Thiede, MD14, Amin T. Turki, MD15, Klaus H. Metzeler, MD16, Torsten Haferlach, MD17, Frederick Damm, MD9*, Rosa Ayala18*, Joaquín Martínez-López, MD, PhD19*, Ken I Mills, BSc, PhD, FRCPath20, Jorge Sierra, MD, PhD21, Sören Lehmann22, Matteo G. Della Porta, MD23*, Jiri Mayer24, Dirk Reinhardt, MD25, Rubén Villoria Medina7*, Renate Schulze-Rath26*, Martje Barbus, PhD27*, Jesús María Hernández-Rivas, MD, PhD28, Brian Huntly, MB ChB, FRCPath, FMedSci, PhD29, Gert Ossenkoppele, MD30, Hartmut Dohner, MD31 and Lars Bullinger, MD32

Long-Term Follow-up of AML Patients Treated Intensively before the Era of Targeted Agents. a Big Data Analysis from the Harmony Collaboration; ASH December 11, poster session, abstract # 2697

The top follow-up activities our SWG will give priority in the next year

  • One of our activities that we will give high priority in the next months is a project evaluating the prognostic impact of subclonal FLT3-ITD mutations in acute myeloid leukemia, a retrospective multicenter study on behalf of the EHA AML-SWG. This project has recently being selected for funding with a EHA “seeding grant”
  • To further develop the ongoing AML projects within HARMONY, as well as defining new projects
  • Consideration of the implications of high throughput sequencing technologies and measurable residual disease assessment in clinical trial design
  • Harmonization of molecular techniques between the research groups
  • Close collaboration with ELN AML WP 5; for example, by developing guidelines / recommendations

Special announcements:

  • 19th Symposium of the European LeukemiaNet /22nd Symposium of the Kompetenznetz Leukämien Mannheim, Germany at the Congress Center Rosengarten, on April 18, 2023
  • Annual Scientific meeting at the EHA 2023 congress in Frankfurt: Latest updates in the ELN recommendations and the classification of AML, Sunday June 11, 8.30 – 9.30
  • ESH 6th International Conference: Acute Myeloid Leukemia “Molecular and Translational”: Advances in Biology and Treatment, October 29 – 31, 2023, Estoril, Portugal

November 2-4, 2024 in Budapest: EHA-SWG Scientific Meeting on MDS/MPN/AML: Commonalities and Differences of Myeloid Neoplasms