Outcomes of patients who developed subsequent solid cancer after hematopoietic cell transplantation

Abstract

To characterize the outcomes of patients who developed a particular subsequent solid cancer after hematopoietic cell transplantation (HCT), age at cancer diagnosis, survival, and causes of death were compared with the respective primary cancer in the general population, using data from the national HCT registry and population-based cancer registries in Japan. Among 31 867 patients who underwent a first HCT between 1990 and 2013 and had progression-free survival at 1 year, 713 patients developed subsequent solid cancer. The median age at subsequent solid cancer diagnosis was 55 years, which was significantly younger than the 67 years for primary cancer patients in the general population (P < .001). The overall survival probability was 60% at 3 years after diagnosis of subsequent solid cancer and differed according to cancer type. Development of most solid cancers was associated with an increased risk of subsequent mortality after HCT. Subsequent solid cancers accounted for 76% of causes of death. Overall survival probabilities adjusted for age, sex, and year of diagnosis were lower in the HCT population than in the general population for colon, bone/soft tissue, and central nervous system cancers and did not differ statistically for other cancers. In conclusion, most subsequent solid cancers occurred at younger ages than primary cancers, emphasizing the need for cancer screening at younger ages. Subsequent solid cancers showed similar or worse survival compared with primary cancers. Biological and genetic differences between primary and subsequent solid cancers remain to be determined.