Immunologic recovery in human marrow graft recipients given cyclosporine or methotrexate for the prevention of graft-versus-host disease

Abstract

Immunologic recovery was studied in ten patients with aplastic anemia and 23 patients with hematologic malignancy who received HLA-identical marrow grafts and cyclosporine postgrafting as prophylaxis against graft-versus-host disease. Cyclosporine , 12.5 mg/kg/day, was administered beginning on the day before marrow infusion and continued for 50 days, when it was tapered and discontinued by 6 months postgrafting . Results were compared with data from concurrent and previously described patients receiving methotrexate as prophylaxis for graft-versus-host disease. Patients treated with cyclosporine or methotrexate had lower-than-normal immunologic parameters and were not different from one another 3-5 months postgrafting . By 11 to 18 months after grafting lymphocyte counts had normalized in both groups. Serum IgA levels were low and IgG levels had normalized in methotrexate-treated patients, and IgM was normal in cyclosporine -treated patients. In vivo antibody production to T-dependent antigens and skin test responses to recall antigens continued to be impaired. The response to the neoantigen dinitrochlorobenzene was still impaired in patients treated with cyclosporine and normal in patients given methotrexate. These data suggest that immunologic recovery after marrow transplantation is similar in cyclosporine -treated and methotrexate-treated patients.