Extracorporeal photopheresis in acute and chronic graft-versus-host disease.
Graft-versus-host disease (GvHD) is a serious complication of allogeneic hematopoietic cell transplantation causing significant morbidity and mortality. Corticosteroids are the established first-line treatment of GvHD. Patients not responding to corticosteroids have a dismal prognosis. Extracorporeal photopheresis (ECP) has objective activity in the treatment of both acute and chronic corticosteroid-refractory GvHD patients, has an excellent safety profile and is internationally well-established. ECP has been recommended by a significant number of renowned scientific organizations as an efficient treatment option for patients with GvHD. ECP has a proven corticosteroid-sparing effect and favourably impacts on survival and quality of life of responding patients.
Medical University of Vienna, Department of Internal Medicine, I, Bone Marrow Transplantation, Austria. Electronic address: hildegard.greinix@meduniwien.ac.at.
Hildegard T
HT
Greinix
Medical University of Vienna, Department of Blood Group, Serology and Transfusion Medicine, Austria.
Nina
N
Worel
Medical University of Vienna, Department of Dermatology, Austria.
Ulrike
U
Just
Medical University of Vienna, Department of Dermatology, Austria.
Robert
R
Knobler
D000208:Acute Disease; D064591:Allografts; D002908:Chronic Disease; D006086:Graft vs Host Disease / Q000276:immunology / Q000628:therapy*; D018380:Hematopoietic Stem Cell Transplantation; D006801:Humans; D017893:Photopheresis / Q000379:methods*
Extracorporeal photopheresis; Graft-versus-host disease