Similar transplantation outcomes for acute myeloid leukemia and myelodysplastic syndrome patients with haploidentical versus 10/10 human leukocyte antigen-matched unrelated and related donors

Allogeneic stem cell transplantation for patients with acute myeloid leukemia (AML) and myelodysplastic syndromes (MDS) has been performed primarily with an HLA-matched donor. Outcomes of haploidentical transplantation have recently improved, and a comparison between donor sources in a uniform cohort of patients has not been performed. We evaluated outcomes of 227 patients with AML/MDS treated with melphalan-based conditioning. Donors were matched related (MRD) (n = 87, 38%), matched unrelated (MUD) (n = 108, 48%), or haploidentical (n = 32, 14%). No significant differences were found between haploidentical and MUD transplantation outcomes; however, there was a trend for improved outcomes in the MRD group, with 3-year progression-free survival for patients in remission of 57%, 45%, and 41% for MRD, MUD, and haploidentical recipients, respectively (P = .417). Recovery of T cell subsets was similar for all groups. These results suggest that haploidentical donors can safely extend transplantation for AML/MDS patients without an HLA-matched donor. Prospective studies comparing haploidentical and MUD transplantation are warranted.