City of Hope Cancer Center Announces Research to Be Presented at 44th Annual Meeting of the American Society of Hematology.

Business Editors & Health/Medical Writers

PHILADELPHIA--(BUSINESS WIRE)--Dec. 5, 2002

When the American Society of Hematology gathers here this weekend for its annual meeting, City of Hope Cancer Center of Los Angeles will be among the major presenters of scientific studies, covering a broad range of research being conducted at the institution.

The following abstracts are being contributed by City of Hope researchers and are listed here in chronological order of presentation. All abstracts are embargoed until one hour after the conclusion of presentation at the conference. For information about the 44th Annual Meeting of ASH, visit www.hematology.org.

"(1304) Gemtuzumab Ozogamicin (Mylotarg(R)) as a Single Agent To
Evaluate Safety and Determine Maximum Tolerated Dose (MTD) in Post
Hematopoietic Stem Cell Transplant Patients with Relapsed, CD33+Acute
Myeloid Leukemia (AML)." Ricardo Spielberger, MD, co-investigator
Saturday, December 7, 2002, 6:00 PM,
Poster Session: Acute Myeloid Leukemia: Prognosis and Therapy
(6:00 PM-7:30 PM) Hall D, Poster Board # 470
Refer to abstract

"(1420) Suppression of CML Hematopoietic Progenitor Growth Following
BCR/ABL-Kinase Inhibition by Imatinib Mesylate Does Not Result from
MAPK Inhibition and Is Synergistically Enhanced Following Inhibition
of MAPK Activity." Ravi Bhatia, MD, principal investigator
Saturday, December 7, 2002, 6:00 PM,
Poster Session: CML Biology and Therapy (6:00 PM-7:30 PM) Hall D,
Poster Board # 586
Study shows that MAPK inhibition may be combined with Gleevec to
better target leukemia cells.

"(1442) The Delta-Like (dlk) Gene, Which Is Overexpressed in MDS
CD34+ Cells, Inhibits Differentiation and Increases Apoptosis of Human
Myeloid Cells." Liang Li, PhD, principal investigator
Saturday, December 7, 2002, 6:00 PM,
Poster Session: Myelodysplastic Syndrome Preclinical Investigations
(6:00 PM-7:30 PM) Hall D, Poster Board # 608
Study shows the potential roles of the dlk gene in the molecular
pathogenesis of MDS.

"(121) Human Cytolytic T-Cell Clones Genetically Modified To Be
CD19-Specific Can Target B-Lineage Leukemia Cells Independent of
Adhesion Molecule Expression." Laurence J.N. Cooper, MD, principal
investigator
Sunday, December 8, 2002, 4:00 PM,
Simultaneous Session: Pediatric Acute Leukemia Therapy
(4:00 PM-5:45 PM) Room 114
Investigators developed a genetically modified human T cell
immunotherapy for leukemias and lymphomas. Such T cell immunotherapy
holds the promise of delivering powerful anti-cancer agents while
being safe for the patient.

"(146) Umbilical Cord Blood Transplantation in Adults: Results of a
Prospective, Multi-Institutional, NHBLI Sponsored Trial." Robert
Sweetman, MD, co-investigator
Sunday, December 8, 2002, 5:00 PM,
Simultaneous Session: Clinical Results: Cord Blood or Alternative
Donor Transplantation (4:00 PM-5:45 PM) Ballroom B
Refer to abstract

"(2154) Comparison of Four BCR/ABL Fluorescence In Situ Hybridization
(FISH) Strategies To Detect Philadelphia Chromosome (Ph)
Rearrangements: Advantages, Limitations and Clinical Question Define
Utility." Marilyn L. Slovak, MD, principal investigator
Sunday, December 8, 2002, 5:45 PM,
Poster Session: CLL: Biology and Clinical Investigation/Philadelphia
Associated Leukemias: MRD/Resistance to STI571 (5:45 PM-7:15 PM)
Hall D, Poster Board # 438
Study looks at the pros and cons of four laboratory testing methods
for improved detection of the Philadelphia chromosome, a tumor marker
used to monitor a patient's response to therapy.

"(2487) Donor Lymphocyte Infusions after Nonmyeloablative Marrow
Transplantation." Stephen J. Forman, MD, co-investigator
Sunday, December 8, 2002, 5:45 PM,
Poster Session: Detection and Management of Relapse After Stem Cell
Transplantation (5:45 PM-7:15 PM) Hall D, Poster Board # 771
Study demonstrates the strength of the donor's immune system in
treating the underlying malignancy in the patient whose disease
returns after bone marrow transplant. Results confirm previous
observations of the importance of the graft versus tumor effect in
helping cure hematological cancer patients.

"(267) Allogeneic-Related Transplantation for CML: A Randomized
Trial Comparing Bone Marrow or Peripheral Blood Stem Cells." Stephen
J. Forman, MD, co-investigator
Monday, December 9, 2002, 7:30 AM,
Simultaneous Session: Allogeneic Matched Related Donor Transplantation
for Leukemia (7:30 AM-9:15 AM) Ballroom A
Study suggests that the use of peripheral blood stem cells might, over
time, improve the effectiveness and cure rate of patients undergoing
transplant for CML. Study looked at cure rates in patients undergoing
transplant from a sibling donor using either peripheral blood or bone
marrow as the stem cell source.

"(277) A Fludarabine/Melphalan (Flu/Mel) Reduced Intensity
Conditioning Regimen with Cyclosporine and Mycophenolate Mofetil
(CSA/MMF) Allows Successful Transplantation of Patients Who Are Not
Candidates for Standard Unrelated Donor Transplantation (URD BMT)."
Roberto Rodriguez, MD, principal investigator
Monday, December 9, 2002, 8:15 AM,
Simultaneous Session: Clinical Results: Allogeneic Mismatched or
Unrelated Transplantation (7:30 AM-9:15 AM) Ballroom B
Study looks at reducing side effects and complications for unrelated
bone marrow donor recipients.

"(402) Growth Factor Mobilized Peripheral Blood Stem Cell Collections
from CML Patients in Complete Cytogenetic Remission on Imatinib
Mesylate (Gleevec) Treatment Are Ph- by Standard Criteria but Are
Contaminated with BCR/ABL+ Progenitor Cells." Ravi Bhatia, MD,
principal investigator
Monday, December 9, 2002, 10:45 AM,
Simultaneous Session: Hematopoietic Progenitor Cell Recruitment and
Mobilization (10:30 AM-12:30 PM) Room 204
Study finds that Gleevec is an effective treatment for leukemia cells.

"(415) A Phase III, Randomized, Placebo-Controlled, Double-Blind,
Multicenter Study (RPCDBM) of Iseganan HCL Oral Solution (Iseganan) in
Reducing Severity of Oral Mucositis (OM) in Patients (pts) Receiving
Stomatotoxic Chemotherapy (CT)." Roberto Rodriguez, MD,
co-investigator
Monday, December 9, 2002, 12:00 PM,
Simultaneous Session: Transplantation Toxicities and Engraftment II
(10:30 AM-12:30 PM) Room 201
Study could not detect a significant difference between Iseganan, a
mouth rinse with antimicrobial properties, and a placebo, to protect
against mouth sores for patients undergoing bone marrow transplants.

"(544) Low Dose TBI Conditioning for Hematopoietic Stem Cell
Transplants (HSCT) from HLA-Matched Related Donors for Patients with
Hematologic Malignancies: Influence of Fludarabine or Cytoreductive
Autografts on Outcome." Firoozeh Sahebi, MD, co-investigator
Monday, December 9, 2002, 2:15 PM,
Simultaneous Session: Reduced Intensity Conditioning and Risk Factors
for GVHD (1:30 PM-3:00 PM) Ballroom B
Refer to abstract

"(677) Durable Remissions in HIV-Related Lymphoma with Autologous
Stem Cell Transplantation." Amrita Krishnan, MD, principal
investigator
Monday, December 9, 2002, 3:45 PM,
Simultaneous Session: Clinical Results in Autologous Stem Cell
Transplantation in Non-Hodgkin's lymphoma (3:15 PM-5:15 PM) Room 201
Study looks at long-term follow-up data of bone marrow transplants in
patients with AIDS lymphoma.

"(662) Reduced Intensity Allogeneic Stem Cell Transplantation for
Patients Who Have Failed a Prior Autologous Stem Cell Transplant."
Sandra Cohen, MD, principal investigator
Monday, December 9, 2002, 4:00 PM,
Simultaneous Session: Detection and Management of Relapse After
Transplantation (3:15 PM-5:15 PM) Room 203
Study looks at mini, or reduced intensity, transplants for lymphoma,
myeloma and leukemia patients. Mini transplants do not use intensive
chemotherapy or radiotherapy treatment. It relies on an immune
mechanism called graft versus tumor effect.

"(679) A Phase I/II Trial of High-Dose Radioimmunotherapy (RIT)
with Zevalin in Combination with High-Dose Etoposide (VP-16) and
Cyclophosphamide (CY) Followed by Autologous Stem Cell Transplant
(ASCT) in Patients with Poor-Risk or Relapsed B-Cell Non-Hodgkin's
Lymphoma (NHL)." Auayporn Nademanee, MD, principal investigator
Monday, December 9, 2002, 4:15 PM,
Simultaneous Session: Clinical Results in Autologous Stem Cell
Transplantation in Non-Hodgkin's lymphoma (3:15 PM-5:15 PM) Room 201
First of its kind radioimmunotherapeutic study shows results of using
ASCT with Zevalin and high-dose chemotherapy in treatment of poor-risk
or relapsed non-Hodgkins lymphoma.

"(680) Autologous Stem Cell Transplantation (ASCT) for Mantle Cell
Lymphoma (MCL): A Report of 69 Patients from City of Hope (COH) and
Stanford." Auayporn Nademanee, co-investigator
Monday, December 9, 2002, 4:30 PM,
Simultaneous Session: Clinical Results in Autologous Stem Cell
Transplantation in Non-Hodgkin's lymphoma (3:15 PM-5:15 PM) Room 201
Long term follow up study of ASCT for MCL at City of Hope and
Stanford.

"(2991) Analysis of Multidrug Resistance Gene-1 (MDR1) Expression
and Function in Adult Acute Lymphoblastic Leukemia (ALL). A Southwest
Oncology Group (SWOG) Study." Stephen J. Forman, MD, co-investigator
Monday, December 9, 2002, 5:15 PM,
Poster Session: ALL: Biology, Cytogenetics and Molecular Markers
(5:15 PM-6:45 PM) Hall D, Poster Board # 411
Although most patients with ALL achieve remission with modern,
intensive chemotherapy, most relapse with resistant disease. This
study looked at reasons why patients might have different outcomes
with the same treatment.

"(3230) Ribozyme-Mediated Downregulation of Fibroblast Growth
Factor Receptor 3 Inhibits Cell Growth of Human Multiple Myeloma Via
Inhibition of Vascular Endothelial Growth Factor." Yun Yen, MD,
principal investigator
Monday, December 9, 2002, 5:15 PM,
Poster Session: Target Based Therapies for Myeloma (5:15 PM-6:45 PM)
Hall D, Poster Board # 650
Study shows a ribozyme that inhibits a growth receptor gene may be
useful in human multiple myeloma treatment.

"(3328) CMV-Specific Tetramer Assay Is Not a Marker for Protection
from CMV Viremia." Ricardo Spielberger, MD, co-investigator
Monday, December 9, 2002, 5:15 PM,
Poster Session: ImmuneReconstitution Post Blood and Marrow
Transplantation (5:15 PM-6:45 PM) Hall D, Poster Board # 748
Study helps in the understanding of the immunity requirements needed
in preparing a vaccine for multiple myeloma patients who have had
blood stem cell transplantations.

"(3355) Hematopoietic Damage Persists Two Years after Autologous
Peripheral Stem Cell Transplantation (aPBSCT) for Lymphoma." Smita
Bhatia, MD, principal investigator
Monday, December 9, 2002, 5:15 PM,
Poster Session: Chronic Graft-vs.-Host Disease and Late Complications
of Stem Cell Transplantation (5:15 PM-6:45 PM) Hall D, Poster
Board # 775
Hematopoietic damage persists two years after autologous peripheral
stem cell transplantation for HD/NHL and could have implications for
the development of therapy-related myelodysplasis and leukemia.

"(3364) Long Term Follow-Up Report on Allogeneic Stem Cell
Transplantation (alloSCT) for Patients with Acute Myelogenous Leukemia
(AML) in First Relapse (Rel) or 2nd Complete Remission (CR): Analysis
of Prognostic Factors." Henry C. Fung, MD, principal investigator
Monday, December 9, 2002, 5:15 PM,
Poster Session: Allogeneic Related Stem Cell Transplantation II
(5:15 PM-6:45 PM) Hall D, Poster Board # 784
Study shows that patients undergoing allogeneic stem cell
transplantations for first relapse or second remission, cytogenetics
at diagnosis is a strong predictor of transplant outcome.

"(3401) Autologous Peripheral Stem Cell Transplantation (ABSCT) for
Adult Patients with Hodgkin's Disease (HD): Impact of Mobilization
Kinetics on Transplant Outcome." Henry C. Fung, MD, principal
investigator
Monday, December 9, 2002, 5:15 PM, Poster Session: Clinical Results in
Autologous Stem Cell Transplantation in Leukemia, Hodgkin's Disease
and non-malignant disorders (5:15 PM-6:45 PM) Hall D, Poster
Board # 821
Study shows rapid stem cell mobilization is associated with improved
transplant results and tends to have less secondary malignancy in
patients with Hodgkin's disease who are undergoing autologous stem
cell transplantation.

"(3408) Treatment of Severe Multiple Sclerosis (MS) with High-Dose
Immunosuppressive Therapy (HDIT) and Autologous Stem Cell
Transplantation (SCT): 2-Year Follow-Up." Harry Openshaw, MD,
co-investigator
Monday, December 9, 2002, 5:15 PM, Poster Session: Clinical Results in
Autologous Stem Cell Transplantation in Leukemia, Hodgkin's Disease
and non-malignant disorders (5:15 PM-6:45 PM) Hall D, Poster
Board # 828
Provides follow-up information on the largest, single-protocol study
of high-dose immunosuppression with peripheral blood stem cell
transplantation in severe multiple sclerosis patients.

"(755) Generation and Characterization of CD20-Specific CD8+
Cytotoxic T Lymphocytes (CTL) Genetically Modified by Introduction of
an scFvFc: Chimeric T Cell Receptor Gene: Preclinical Studies Prior
to a Phase I Trial of Cellular Immunotherapy of Follicular Lymphoma."
Andrew Raubitschek, MD; Stephen J. Forman, MD; Michael Jensen, MD,
co-investigators
Tuesday, December 10, 2002, 8:00 AM,
Simultaneous Session: Biologic Therapy of Lymphomas (Laboratory and
Clinical Investigations) (8:00 AM-10:00 AM) Salon E (Marriott)
Refer to abstract

About City of Hope

City of Hope Cancer Center is one of the world's leading research and treatment centers for cancer and other life-threatening diseases, including diabetes and HIV/AIDS. A pioneer in the fields of bone marrow transplantation and genetics, City of Hope is a National Cancer Institute-designated Comprehensive Cancer Center and a founding member of the National Comprehensive Cancer Network. For more information, visit www.cityofhope.org.