title: Anti-thymocyte globulin treatment for aplastic anemia.
abstract: 20 patients with severe aplastic anemia were treated with anti-thymocyte globulin (ATG), 6 of them in combination with haplo-identical bone marrow. 7 patients (35%) showed a good clinical response within 6 months; they were off transfusions and had greater than or equal to 0.8 x 10(9)/l neutrophils. ATG had the greatest effect on red-cell production and the least on platelet production. The hematological recovery with ATG could not be predicted from the bone-marrow histology, CFU-c growth, or clinical data. However, patients with strong HLA antibodies seemed to respond more often. The actuarial survival was 55% at 5 years. Under intensive supportive care, even 7 out of 12 non-responders were alive after 1 year. ATG appears to be a useful form of therapy for patients with severe aplastic anemia who are not candidates for bone-marrow transplantation.
mesh_terms: D000293:Adolescent; D000328:Adult; D000368:Aged; D000741:Anemia, Aplastic / Q000097:blood / Q000628:therapy*; D000818:Animals; D000961:Antilymphocyte Serum / Q000009:adverse effects / Q000627:therapeutic use*; D016026:Bone Marrow Transplantation; D004906:Erythrocyte Count; D005260:Female; D006680:HLA Antigens / Q000276:immunology; D006801:Humans; D007958:Leukocyte Count; D008297:Male; D008875:Middle Aged; D009504:Neutrophils; D010976:Platelet Count; D011817:Rabbits; D012156:Reticulocytes; D013601:T-Lymphocytes / Q000276:immunology*
chemical_list: D000961:Antilymphocyte Serum; D006680:HLA Antigens