NMDP and CIBMTR to Present Innovative New Transplantation Research at ASH 2026

MINNEAPOLIS, Nov. 04, 2026 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- NMDP^SM, a global nonprofit leader in cell therapy, and CIBMTR^® (Center for International Blood and Marrow Transplant Research^®) its collaborative research program with the Medical College of Wisconsin (MCW), will present data from 10 sponsored studies at the 68^th American Society of Hematology (ASH) Annual Meeting from Dec. 12-15 in New Orleans, La. New Phase II trial results are informing graft-versus-host disease (GVHD) prevention strategies in mismatched unrelated donor (MMUD) transplantation and deepening understanding of the relationship between measurable residual disease on relapse risk for patients with acute myeloid leukemia (AML).

“Advances in mismatched unrelated donor transplantation on the post-transplant cyclophosphamide (PTCy) platform have expanded access for more patients but came with the trade-off of higher infection rates and delayed engraftment,” said Steven M. Devine, MD, chief medical officer, NMDP; executive leader, CIBMTR. “These new results build on the foundation of NMDP-sponsored, CIBMTR-conducted Donor for All clinical trials to refine our approach to further optimize outcomes for MMUD with lower doses of PTCy and also develop tools to gain a deeper understanding of factors influencing risk of AML relapse. That commitment to answering the next critical question is how we move transplant science forward and help more patients survive and thrive.”

Optimizing patient outcomes

Among the accepted abstracts are the initial one-year results from the reduced-intensity conditioning (RIC) cohort of OPTIMIZE (NCT06001385), which builds on NMDP and CIBMTR’s ACCESS trial (NCT04904588). ACCESS established safety and efficacy using full-dose PTCy (50mg/kg) for GVHD prevention in patients with common blood cancers receiving MMUD peripheral blood stem cell (PBSC) transplants; OPTIMIZE is evaluating whether a lower dose of PTCy (25mg/kg) can maintain the same prevention while reducing infection risk and other side effects.

Eighty-nine adult participants received predominantly 7/8 HLA-mismatched PBSC grafts (n=88, 99%). The primary endpoint of infection free survival at day 100 was 69.7% (90% CI, 60.8-76.9%), exceeding the prespecified benchmark, and was 52.6% (90% CI, 41.4-62.5%) at one year. One-year overall survival was remarkable at 88.7% (95% CI, 80-93.8%), similar to the ACCESS trial results using full-dose PTCy (79.6%).

Additional data from the 29-patient OPTIMIZE safety run-in using intermediate-dose PTCy (37.5mg/kg) will be featured in an oral presentation. Related CIBMTR presentations will include a retrospective analysis examining the impact of specific HLA mismatched loci on outcomes after 7/8 mismatched unrelated donor transplant using PTCy; a comparison of quality-of-life trajectories after MMUD transplant with PTCy; and an external validation of model-informed fludarabine exposure as a predictor of non-relapse mortality after PTCy-based transplantation.

MEASURE demonstrates value of personalized AML MRD testing

Researchers from the multi-center MEASURE (NCT05224661) study will present the primary results of their prospective validation of whole genome sequencing (WGS)-informed measurable residual disease (MRD) testing in acute myeloid leukemia (AML). The study, performed at 18 centers across the United States, enrolled adults undergoing transplantation for AML to evaluate personalized MRD testing based on WGS information from initial diagnosis. Study participants testing negative in blood prior to transplant (n=101, 40%) had significantly lower cumulative incidence of relapse (CIR) post-transplant than those testing positive (n=153; HR=7.5, 95% CI 2.8-20.6, p<0.001). Flow cytometry performed as clinical standard of care pre-transplant had 31% sensitivity for predicting relapses in the first year after transplant, compared with 97% for this genome-informed MRD approach.

“Relapse of AML is the leading cause of allotransplant failure. NMDP and CIBMTR have demonstrated leadership in generating this foundational evidence needed for future precision medicine solutions,” said Christopher Hourigan, DM, DPhil, principal investigator of the MEASURE study, Virginia Tech Fralin Biomedical Research Institute Cancer Research Center. “MEASURE has shown in a nationwide prospective context that personalized AML MRD testing is feasible, applicable to all, and can identify those at a very low risk of relapse.”

Other MEASURE oral presentations will include an analysis of pre-transplant flow cytometry in patients with AML receiving hypomethylating agents and venetoclax; a study of personalized DNA-based ddPCR for MRD detection in KMT2A-altered AML; and a pilot study of blood-based methylation profiling for MRD detection in AML.

CIBMTR is a research collaboration between the Medical College of Wisconsin^® and NMDP.

NMDP CIBMTR presentations at ASH include:

Oral presentations

Abstract title: Tumor-agnostic plasma cell-free DNA methylation profiling for measurable residual disease in patients with acute myeloid leukemia
Presenting author: G Gui
Presentation type: Oral
Paper number: 299
Date and time: Dec. 12, 2026, 3–3:15 p.m. CT
Location: MCCNO - 393-396

Abstract title: Prospective multicenter validation of whole genome-informed acute myeloid leukemia measurable residual disease testing: The MEASURE study
Presenting author: C Hourigan
Presentation type: Oral
Paper number: 390
Date and time: Dec. 12, 2026, 5:15–5:30 p.m. CT
Location: MCCNO - Great Hall AD

Abstract title: HLA mismatched locus impact on outcomes in mismatched unrelated donor hematopoietic cell transplantation using post-transplant cyclophosphamide GVHD prophylaxis for acute leukemia or myelodysplastic syndrome: A CIBMTR retrospective analysis
Presenting author: S Spellman
Presentation type: Oral
Paper number: 565
Date and time: Dec. 13, 2026, 9:30–9:45 a.m. CT
Location: MCCNO - 388-390

Abstract title: Personalized DNA-based multiplex ddPCR for MRD detection in patients with KMT2A-altered AML
Presenting author: R Al-Ali
Presentation type: Oral
Paper number: 575
Date and time: Dec. 13, 2026, 10:30–10:45 a.m. CT
Location: MCCNO - 353-355

Abstract title: Intermediate-dose post-transplantation cyclophosphamide for <7/8 HLA-mismatched unrelated donor peripheral blood stem cell transplantation: Safety run-in results from OPTIMIZE
Presenting author: A Jimenez Jimenez
Presentation type: Oral
Paper number: 570
Date and time: Dec. 13, 2026, 10:45–11 a.m. CT
Location: MCCNO - 388-390

Abstract title: Pre-transplant flow cytometry in AML patients undergoing allogeneic HCT after hypomethylating agent and venetoclax therapy
Presenting author: J Tettero
Presentation type: Oral
Paper number: 716
Date and time: Dec. 13, 2026, 4:45–5 p.m. CT
Location: MCCNO - Great Hall AD

Abstract title: Reduced-dose post-transplantation cyclophosphamide achieves high infection-free and overall survival in mismatched unrelated donor transplantation using reduced intensity/non-myeloablative conditioning: Initial results from OPTIMIZE
Presenting author: B Shaffer
Presentation type: Oral
Paper number: 1062
Date and time: Dec. 14, 2026, 5:45–6 p.m. CT
Location: MCCNO - 353-355

Abstract title: External validation of model-informed fludarabine exposure as a predictor of non-relapse mortality after PTCy-based allogeneic hematopoietic cell transplantation: Findings from the ACCESS trial
Presenting author: M Alhomoud
Presentation type: Oral
Paper number: 441
Date and time: Dec. 12, 2026, 4:30-4:45 p.m. CT
Location: MCCNO - 388-390

Poster presentations

Abstract title: Post-transplant cyclophosphamide-based graft-versus-host disease prophylaxis after reduced-intensity mismatched unrelated donor peripheral blood stem cell transplantation: 2-year outcomes from the ACCESS trial
Presenting author: M Gooptu
Presentation type: Poster
Paper number: 4229
Date and time: Dec. 13, 2026, 6–8 p.m. CT
Location: MCCNO Hall F

Abstract title: Comparing QOL trajectories of ACCESS trial, BMT CTN 1703, and real-world patients in the CIBMTR registry 1-year post-hematopoietic cell transplantation (HCT)
Presenting author: R Newcomb
Presentation type: Poster
Poster number: 6538
Date and time: Dec. 14, 2026, 6–8 p.m. CT
Location: MCCNO Hall F

About CIBMTR^®
CIBMTR^® (Center for International Blood and Marrow Transplant Research^®) is a nonprofit research collaboration between NMDP^SM, in Minneapolis, and the Medical College of Wisconsin (MCW), in Milwaukee. CIBMTR collaborates with the global scientific community to increase survival and enrich quality of life for patients. CIBMTR facilitates critical observational and interventional research through scientific and statistical expertise, a large network of centers, and a unique database of long-term clinical data for more than 680,000 people who have received hematopoietic cell transplantation and other cellular therapies. Learn more at cibmtr.org. It is funded by the National Cancer Institute, the National Heart, Lung and Blood Institute and the National Institute for Allergy and Infectious Diseases, the Health Resources and Services Administration, the Office of Naval Research, industry sponsors, MCW, and NMDP.

About NMDP^SM 
At NMDP^SM, we believe each of us holds the key to curing blood cancers and disorders. As a global nonprofit leader in cell therapy, NMDP creates essential connections between researchers and supporters to inspire action and accelerate innovation to find life-saving cures. With the help of blood stem cell donors from the world’s most diverse registry and our extensive network of transplant partners, physicians and caregivers, we’re expanding access to treatment so that every patient can receive their life-saving cell therapy. Learn more at nmdp.org.

Contact: 
Drea Garrison
media@nmdp.org