Letermovir Prevents Cytomegalovirus Infection in Aplastic Anemia Following Allogeneic HSCT

Letermovir reduced the rate of cytomegalovirus (CMV) infection within the first 100 days in patients with aplastic anemia who have undergone allogeneic hematopoietic stem cell transplantation (HSCT), according to a study published in Infectious Diseases and Therapy.

The study also found that younger age (< 30 years) at the time of transplant was a statistically significant protective factor against CMV infection.

“According to the analysis, letermovir and younger age at HSCT (<30 years) were statistically significant protective factors against CMV infection occurring within 100 days after transplantation,” the researchers wrote. Researchers from Guangzhou First People’s Hospital in China evaluated overall survival (OS) rate and cumulative incidence of CMV infection during the first 100 days after allogeneic HSCT.

A total of 87 patients were categorized into either a letermovir group (n=34) or control group (n=53). In the letermovir group, 73.5% remained infection-free within the first 100 days after allogeneic HSCT, compared with 22.6% of patients in the control group.

The mean duration from diagnosis to CMV infection clearance was 11.7 days in the letermovir group, compared with 18.6 days in the control group (P=0.0219).

The OS rate for the full cohort was 97.7%, with no significant difference between the groups.

In a matched group analysis of 42 patients, the letermovir group also showed a significantly lower incidence of CMV infection compared with the control group (14.3% vs 90.5%, respectively; P<0.001).

Letermovir was well-tolerated among most patients, and no cases of CMV disease affecting organ function were observed in the letermovir group until the end of the follow-up.

Reference

Zhang Y, Chen X, Zhou M, et al. Letermovir effectively prevents cytomegalovirus infection in patients with aplastic anemia after hematopoietic stem cell transplantation: a real-world retrospective cohort study. Infect Dis Ther. 2024. doi.org/10.1007/s40121-024-00917-2