Multi-courses of blinatumomab combined with reduced dose chemotherapy has been successfully used in chemo-intolerant middle to high-risk pediatric B-ALL patients with invasive fungal disease
Zhou EM, Tang Y, Liao C, Lin S, Shen H, Wang D, Xu L, Zhang P, Song H, Xu X, Zhang J, Liang J, Shen D, Zhao F, Xu W
Invasive fungal disease (IFD) remains a challenging complication and a leading cause of death in the treatment of childhood acute leukemia (AL). Blinatumomab is a novel bispecific antibody targeting CD19, with excellent anti-tumor effects against B cell malignancies, including B cell acute lymphoblastic leukemia (B-ALL). Compared with standard chemotherapy, blinatumomab causes less immunosuppression. This report describes two children with B-ALL who experienced recurrent high fever during induction chemotherapy. Next-generation sequencing (NGS) detected Aspergillus in bronchoalveolar lavage fluid, skin tissue, blood, and cerebrospinal fluid. After antifungal therapy, the patients received 9 courses of blinatumomab combined with reduced-dose chemotherapy. Symptoms, signs, and imaging findings improved significantly, B-ALL remained in continuous remission in both patients, and no cytokine release syndrome, neurotoxicity, or fungal infection recurrence occurred. These cases suggest that alternating blinatumomab with reduced-dose chemotherapy is both effective and safe for patients with B-ALL suffering life-threatening infections in the setting of ALL therapy.
© 2025. The Author(s).
Annals of hematology, 2025-06-01