Background: Human papillomavirus (HPV) is causally linked to oropharyngeal squamous cell carcinoma (OPSCC). Consensus guidelines recommend clinical exams and imaging in decreasing frequency as part of post-treatment surveillance for recurrence. Plasma tumor tissue modified viral (TTMV)-HPV DNA testing has emerged as a biomarker which can inform disease status during surveillance. Methods: This retrospective observational cohort study involved 543 patients who completed curative-intent therapy for HPV-associated OPSCC between February 2020 and January 2022 at 8 U.S. cancer care institutions. We determined the negative predictive value (NPV) of TTMV-HPV DNA for recurrence when matched to physician-reported clinical outcome data (median follow-up time: 27.9 months; range: 4.5-154). Results: The cohort included mostly men with a median age of 61 who had locoregionally advanced disease. HPV status was determined by p16 positivity in 87% of patients, with a positive HPV PCR/ISH among 55%; while pre-treatment TTMV-HPV DNA status was unknown for most (79%) patients. Patients had a mean of 2.6 tests and almost half had 3 or more TTMV-HPV DNA results during surveillance. The per-test and per-patient sensitivity of the assay was 92.5% (95%CI: 87.5-97.5) and 87.3% (95%CI: 79.1-95.5), respectively. The NPV for the assay was 99.4% (95%CI: 98.9-99.8) and 98.4% (95%CI: 97.3-99.5), respectively. Conclusions: TTMV-HPV DNA surveillance testing yields few false negative results and few missed recurrences. These data could inform decisions on when to pursue re-imaging following first disease restaging and could inform future surveillance practice. Additional study of how pre-treatment TTMV-HPV DNA status impacts sensitivity for recurrence is needed.

1829 patients underwent radical prostatectomy with pelvic lymph node dissection (RP+PLND) (241 high-risk, 943 intermediate-risk, 645 low-risk). Positive margin rates were 17.8%, 14.8%, and 11.9% in the high, intermediate-and lowrisk groups. Five-year overall survival was 92.5% in lymph node-positive patients and 94.9% in lymph node-negative patients (p = 0.8). Age, prebiopsy prostatespecific antigen, and clinical stage were associated with positive surgical margins in patients with lymph node metastasis (LNM). Recipients of RP+PLND with LNM and positive surgical margins required adjuvant treatment.

Multiple myeloma (MM) patients frequently attain a bone marrow (BM) minimal residual disease (MRD) negativity status in response to treatment. We identified 568 patients who achieved BM MRD negativity following autologous stem cell transplantation (ASCT) and maintenance combination therapy with an immunomodulatory agent and a proteasome inhibitor. BM MRD was evaluated by next generation flow cytometry (sensitivity of 10-5 cells) at 3 to 6 months intervals. With a median follow up of 9.9 years from diagnosis (range, 0.4 - 30.9), 61% of patients maintained MRD negativity, while 39% experienced MRD conversion at a median of 6.3 years (range, 1.4 - 25). The highest risk of MRD conversion occurred within the first 5 years after treatment and was observed more often in patients with abnormal metaphase cytogenetic abnormalities (95%vs. 84%; P = 0.001). MRD conversion was associated with a high risk of relapse and preceded it by a median of 1.0 year (range, 0 - 4.9). However, 27% of MRD conversion positive patients had not yet experienced a clinical relapse with a median follow-up of 9.3 years (range, 2.2 - 21.2). Landmark analyses using time from ASCT revealed patients with MRD conversion during the first 3 years had an inferior overall and progression-free survival compared to patients with sustained MRD negativity. MRD conversion correctly predicted relapse in 70%, demonstrating the utility of serial BM MRD assessment to complement standard laboratory and imaging to make informed salvage therapy decisions.

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Hemolytic uremic syndrome (HUS) is a type of thrombotic microangiopathy syndrome (TMA) defined as a triad of non-immune microangiopathic hemolytic anemia, thrombocytopenia, and acute kidney injury. Shiga toxin (Stx) or diarrhea-associated HUS is one of the major categories of secondary HUS, which is seen predominantly in children and is regarded as a rare entity in the adult population. We present two cases of sporadic Stx or diarrhea-associated HUS in adult females. Our first case is a 74-year-old Caucasian woman who presented to the emergency department with nausea, vomiting, and bloody diarrhea for five days. The patient reported a history of consuming meatloaf from a local store three days prior to the onset of symptoms. On presentation, laboratory workup was consistent with hemolytic anemia, thrombocytopenia, and acute kidney injury. Thrombocytopenic purpura was ruled out with normal ADAMTS13 activity. The patient’s kidney function improved and the platelet count recovered to normal with supportive measures and did not require renal replacement therapy. In the second case, we describe a 79-year-old Caucasian woman with a history of metastatic lung cancer who presented with abdominal pain, nausea, vomiting, and bloody diarrhea. History was positive for consuming meat from a local restaurant a day prior to the onset of symptoms. Initial laboratory work showed severe thrombocytopenia, microangiopathic hemolytic process, and acute kidney injury requiring continuous renal replacement therapy. Due to the unfavorable prognosis of her metastatic lung cancer, the patient and the family members decided to opt for hospice care and she was subsequently transferred to the inpatient hospice. Diarrhea-associated HUS or Stx-HUS is a relatively underreported entity among the adult population. The treatment of typical or Stx-HUS is mainly supportive, but it is critical to rule out other causes of TMAs, especially thrombotic thrombocytopenic purpura (TTP), as it is a medical emergency that requires prompt plasmapheresis.