1Zuzana Tothova, HMS III
Gillian Lieberman, MD
Radiologic Evaluation of
Complications following
Hematopoietic Stem Cell Transplantation
Zuzana Tothova, HMS IIIZuzana Tothova, HMS III
Gillian Lieberman, MDGillian Lieberman, MD
11/12/200711/12/2007
2Zuzana Tothova, HMS III
Gillian Lieberman, MD
Overview
Our patient R.D. : presentation on day +60 s/p auto-SCT
Primer on hematopoietic stem cell transplantation (SCT)
Common pulmonary complications of SCT
Common abdominal complications of SCT
Future of post-SCT complication imaging
3Zuzana Tothova, HMS III
Gillian Lieberman, MD
Our patient R.D.: 37 y.o. man with AML
s/p autologous SCT
A 37 year old man with history of AML presents with
fever on Day +60 s/p myeloablative autologous SCT
Vital signs: T=102.9; HR=100; BP=120/70; RR=16, O2 sat:95 RA
Physical Exam: HEENT: PERRLA, EOMI, OP clear, MMM
Neck: no JVD, no LAD, neg Kernig’s&Brudz.
CV: RRR, nl S1, S2, no MGR
Lungs: CTAB, no WRR
Skin: no rashes
Labs: WBC = 9.3, Neut = 80.6%, Lymph = 11.6%
Medications: Pentamidine prophylaxis, Protonix, Lantus
4Zuzana Tothova, HMS III
Gillian Lieberman, MD
Primer on Stem Cell Transplantation
(Hematopoietic) Stem Cell Transplantation (SCT)
Bone marrow transplantation OR peripheral blood SCT.
(BMT) (PBSCT)
Treatment of hematologic malignancies (attempt to achieve
cure by eliminating malignant cells) and solid malignancies
(as an adjunct treatment to allow more aggressive treatment)
Complications occur due to immune system dysfunction,
can be lethal
Radiologic evaluation = cornerstone for timely diagnosis of
complications
5Zuzana Tothova, HMS III
Gillian Lieberman, MD
Outline of PBSCT:
Critical to know
1. donor type
2. timing after SCT
3. extent of myeloablation
& current immune status
Shlomchik et al,
Nat Rev Imm 2007
6Zuzana Tothova, HMS III
Gillian Lieberman, MD
Clinical factors to aid radiologic diagnosis:
What type of SCT did the patient receive?
• Autologous (donor = self)
• Syngeneic (donor = identical twin)
• Allogeneic (donor = HLA-matched sibling or unrelated)
How long has it been since patient’s SCT?
• 0-30 days: pre-engraftment phase
• 30-100 days: early post-transplantation phase
• 100 days+ : late post-transplantation phase
What conditioning regimen did the patient receive?
• Full myeloablation: most autologous and allogeneic SCT
• Non-myeloablative “mini-transplants”: allogeneic
7Zuzana Tothova, HMS III
Gillian Lieberman, MD
SCT type and timing affect
nature of post-SCT complications
Type
Early
complications
(infectious, graft
failure, VOD)
Acute
GVHD
(acute,
chronic)
Autologous/Syng + -
Allogeneic + +
Myeloablative + +
Non-myeloablative - +
Chronic
complications
(infectious,auto
immune )
-
+
+
+
Time (days) 30 1000 >100
8Zuzana Tothova, HMS III
Gillian Lieberman, MD
Let’s go back to our patient now…
9Zuzana Tothova, HMS III
Gillian Lieberman, MD
Our patient R.D. with fever: Chest radiograph
PA Plain chest radiograph (PACS, BIDMC)
1, ill-defined
opacities
2, cardiomegaly
3, ground glass
opacity/interstitial
edema
Pertinent negatives:
NO apparent pleural
effusion*
NO pneumothorax
* Costophrenic angles not
visualized, can’t tell definitively
10Zuzana Tothova, HMS III
Gillian Lieberman, MD
Our patient R.D. with fever: CT of chest
CT chest with contrast (PACS, BIDMC)
ill-defined airspace
opacities
associated with:
blood – pulmonary
hemorrhage
pus – pneumonia
fluid – pulmonary
edema
nodule - tumor
“Halo sign”
associated with
pulm hemorrhage
Ground glass
opacities
associated with
interstitial edema
hemorrhage
Pericardial effusion
Pleural effusion
11Zuzana Tothova, HMS III
Gillian Lieberman, MD
Brief differential diagnosis
Immunocompetent:
(very broad)
• Tumor
• bronchoalveolar Ca
• metastases - melanoma
• Infection (pneumonia)
• organizing pneumonia
• eosinophilic pneumonia
• atypical pneumonia
• Inflammation (vasculitis)
• Wegener’s
Immunocompromised:
• Infection
• Infection
• Infection
CMV
PCP
Aspergillus
TB
any infection
Rx: Voriconazole for presumed Aspergillus pneumonia
12Zuzana Tothova, HMS III
Gillian Lieberman, MD
Other presentations of Aspergillus in SCT patients:
2 forms of Aspergillosis
CT chest w/o contrast
Companion patient #1 (PACS, BIDMC)
Not to be confused with
Aspergilloma!
• Tracheobronchial
• Angioinvasive
CT chest w/ (top) and w/o (bottom) contrast
Coy et al, Radiographics 2005
13Zuzana Tothova, HMS III
Gillian Lieberman, MD
Companion patient #2:diffuse aspergillosis on CT
• 29 yo woman with fever and neutropenia on Day +14 s/p
induction therapy for AML
“Tree-in-Bud”
pattern
associated with
Aspergillosis
TB
M. Avium
CMV
RSV
CT chest with contrast (CAS, MGH)
Rossi et al.
RadioGraphics 2005
CT chest with contrast
14Zuzana Tothova, HMS III
Gillian Lieberman, MD
Other pulmonary complications of SCT
CMV pneumonia
Pulmonary complications occur in 40-60% SCT recipients
Diffuse Alveolar Hemorrhage
Coy et al, Radiographics 2005
pulmonary edema; PCP, VZV and Zygomyces pneumonia, etc.
CT chest with contrast CT chest with contrast
15Zuzana Tothova, HMS III
Gillian Lieberman, MD
Following the clinical course of our
patient R.D., he presents to ED 4 months
s/p auto-SCT with back pain…
16Zuzana Tothova, HMS III
Gillian Lieberman, MD
4 months later, our patient R.D. fails auto-SCT
4 months s/p auto-SCT, patient presents with back pain
recurrence of disease: WBC= 54K, 94% blasts, BM biopsy
shows 90% intertrabecular space by blasts
Reinduction therapy, complicated by repeat bouts of invasive
aspergillosis
→ Unmatched, unrelated mini-allogeneic SCT (our patient
does not have a matched related or unrelated donor)
17Zuzana Tothova, HMS III
Gillian Lieberman, MD
Our patient R.D. presents on day +24 s/p
allo-SCT with first complication
Day +24 s/p unmatched unrelated mini-allo SCT
patient develops fever, 3 days of worsening watery non-
bloody diarrhea, diffuse abdominal pain, NB/NB vomitting,
decreased po intake secondary to nausea
WBC = 7.4, Neut = 82%, Lymph = 2%
Supine plain abdominal film demonstrating no evidence of
pneumoperitoneum or obstruction
18Zuzana Tothova, HMS III
Gillian Lieberman, MD
Our patient R.D.: diffuse bowel changes on CT
CT abdomen and pelvis with contrast (PACS, BIDMC)
Diffuse
thickening
of small and
large bowel
wall (4-5 mm)
Featureless
(loss of mucosal
folds)
Courtesy of Dr. Kruskal
(BIDMC)
Contrast study of GI
Companion patient #3
19Zuzana Tothova, HMS III
Gillian Lieberman, MD
Halo of
hypoattenuation
within walls
a.k.a. Target sign
associated with
Shock bowel
Inflammation
Vasculitis
Pertinent
negatives:
No obstruction
No perienteric/
pericolic fluid
No pneumatosis
CT abdomen with contrast (PACS, BIDMC)
Our patient R.D.: diffuse bowel changes on CT
20Zuzana Tothova, HMS III
Gillian Lieberman, MD
Brief differential diagnosis
Immunocompetent:
(very broad)
• Tumor (lymphoma)
• Infection (enteritis)
• Inflammation (Crohn’s)
• Ischemia/vasculitis
Immunocompromised
s/p allogeneic SCT:
Rx: Steroids for Acute GVHD
GVHD
GVHD
GVHD
Typhlitis
Aspergillus, Candida
Pseudomem. colitis
21Zuzana Tothova, HMS III
Gillian Lieberman, MD
Primer on Graft versus Host Disease
GVHD: occurs in patients s/p allogeneic-SCT or
immunodeficient patients receiving blood transfusions
Mechanism: donor-derived T cells attack recipient’s tissues,
severity related to degree of HLA mismatch
Sites: 95% skin, 75% liver, 50% gut
Two stages: acute (0-100 days) and chronic (100 days+)
• Acute: small and large bowel mucosa diffusely abnormal
• Chronic: esophageal strictures and webs
Prognosis dependent on early treatment – early diagnosis is
essential!
22Zuzana Tothova, HMS III
Gillian Lieberman, MD
Menu of tests: additional imaging of GVHD
U/S Doppler:
F-FDG PET Ausberger et al, Transplantation 2007
Neumann et al, Gastrointestinal Endoscopy 2007
Dietrich et al, European Journal of Radiology 2007
Wireless capsule endoscopy:
PET:
23Zuzana Tothova, HMS III
Gillian Lieberman, MD
Other SCT-related abdominal complications
Infections (eg C.difficile→ pseudomembranous colitis;
Candida, Aspergillus → microabscesses in liver, spleen, kidney)
Typhlitis (neutropenic colitis)
CT of abdomen with contrast CT of abdomen with contrast
Benign Pneumatosis intestinalis Hepatic veno-occlusive disease
(VOD) Coy et al, Radiographics 2005
24Zuzana Tothova, HMS III
Gillian Lieberman, MD
Summary of BMT-related complications
Pre-engaftment
(0-30 days)
Early
post-transplantation
(30-100 days)
Late
Post-transplantation
(100 days + )
Pulmonary edema
DAH CMV pneumonia
Idiopathic pulmonary
syndrome
Aspergillus
Viral (non-CMV) & bacterial
pneumonia
Cryptogenic organizing pneumonia
Constrictive bronchial obliterans
Pulmonary proteinosis
C. Difficile colitis
Hepatic VOD
Hemorrhagic cystitis (early)
Hemorrhagic cystitis (late)
Acute GVHD
Chronic GVHD
Adapted from Coy et al. RadioGraphics 2005
25Zuzana Tothova, HMS III
Gillian Lieberman, MD
Acknowledgments:
Gillian Lieberman, MD
Maria Levantakis
Senthil Palaniappun, MD
Andrew Hines-Peralta, MD
Suzana Zorca
Paul Dieffenbach
Larry Barbaras, Webmaster
26Zuzana Tothova, HMS III
Gillian Lieberman, MD
References
Auberger J, Kendler D, Virgolini I, et al. Fluorine-18-fluorodeoxyglucose positron
emission tomography as a novel noninvasive diagnostic tool for gastrointestinal
graft-versus-host disease. Transplantation 2007; 84: 440-1
Coy DL, Ormazabal A, Godwin JD, Lalani T. Imaging Evaluation of Pulmonary
and Abdominal Complications Following Hematopoietic Stem Cell
Transplantation. RadioGraphics 2005; 25: 305-18
Dietrich CF, Jedrzejczyk M, Ignee A. Sonographic assessment of splanchnic
arteries and the bowell wall. European Journal of Radiology 2007; 64: 202-12
Neumann S, Schoppmeyer K, Lange T, et al. Wireless capsule endoscopy for
diagnosis of acute intestinal graft-versus-host disease.Gastrointestinal
Endoscopy 2007; 65: 403-9
Rossi SE, Franquet T, Volpacchio M, et al. Tree-in-Bud Pattern at Thin-Section
CT of the Lungs: Radiologic- Pathologic Overview. RadioGraphics 2005;
25: 789-801
Shlomchik WD. Graft-versus-host disease. Nature Reviews Immunology 2007;
7:340-52
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