Cancer

• Researchers studied biomarkers of patients prior to Hematopoietic Cell Transplantation (HCT). Compared to 16 healthy control patients, "pre-transplant patients came to transplant with abnormal levels of all three biomarkers, reflecting residual damage from prior chemotherapy." The study suggests that pre-HCT interventions to the gut microbiome may decrease patient risk for Graft-Versus-Host disease post HCT. Read the study publication here.
• Hear more about Graft versus Host disease from Dr. Shernan Holtan, researcher at the University of Minnesota.

A randomized, double-blind, placebo controlled trial investigating the impact of microbial restoration on patients being treated with intensive chemotherapy for acute leukemia. Study details are available here. Initial findings indicate Microbiota Transplant Therapy is safe in this patient population. A phase 2, randomized, double-blind trial found the patients receiving the active MTT therapy had a lower rate of infection than the placebo group.

Researchers are preparing for a third clinical trial to investigate whether FMT after an allogenic stem cell transplant, when compared to placebo, can prevent Acute-Versus-Host disease.

This placebo-controlled trial has reached recruitment goals and should have results available by the end of the year. Hear more about the impact of microbial restoration on Graft Versus Host Disease and non-cancer related mortality after bone marrow transplantation from Dr. Shernan Holtan at the University of Minnesota here and from Dr. Armin Rashidi here.

Details on this Phase II, double blind, placebo controlled trial are available here.

• Researchers tracked the microbial communities of patients undergoing intensive chemotherapy for Acute leukemia and monitored the impact on the diversity of the gut microbiome. Investigators followed two groups of patients, those completing their first induction of chemotherapy and those undergoing repeat therapy.
• The study found "larger departures of microbial communities from the pre-chemotherapy baseline during repeat therapy compared to first induction."
• Read the trial publication here.

• This trial is an observational study monitoring the length of microbial disruption after chemotherapy and rounds of antibiotics for cancer treatment. Researchers found that microbial communities were "stressed beyond its ability to recover", even after antibiotics treatments ended.
• You can read the trials research publication here and the clinical trial details here.