The BSH Guidelines Official Podcast

CNS lymphoma (CNSL) is associated with inferior outcomes, which may be attributed to several factors: poor CNS penetrance of chemotherapeutics, including RCHOP (rituximab, cyclophosphamide, doxorubicin, vincristine, prednisolone),¹ impaired neurocognitive function and patient performance status (PS) contributing to increased treatment toxicity,^2, 3 and recurrent genetic aberrations conferring treatment resistance.^4-6 The rarity and heterogeneity of SCNSL also limits the evidence base for treatment recommendations, with poor outcomes potentially attributable at least in part to lack of optimised treatment protocols.

This good practice paper focuses on diffuse large B-cell lymphoma (DLBCL), the most common SCNSL subtype. It covers diagnostic and therapeutic aspects of care for the three SCNSL scenarios and multiply relapsed SCNSL. Treatment recommendations are framed by patient fitness and treatment intent.

This guideline updates and widens the scope of the previous British Society for Haematology (BSH) Clinical guidelines for testing for heritable thrombophilia¹ to include both heritable and acquired thrombophilia.

The term thrombophilia is generally used to describe hereditary and/or acquired conditions associated with an increased predisposition to thrombosis. Heritable thrombophilia refers to genetic disorders of specific haemostatic proteins. These guidelines focus only on the factors that are identified from laboratory testing and therefore exclude disorders such as cancer, inflammatory conditions and obesity that are associated with thrombosis through multiple mechanisms.

Audio commentary from Dr Mike Dennis on the good practice paper - management of older patients with frailty and acute myeloid leukaemia. 

Audio commentary by Dr George Follows.

British Society for Haematology Annual Scientific Meeting Guidelines Session 2022

Dr Suzy Morton on the Good Practice Paper Cytomegalovirus serological testing in potential allogeneic haematopoietic stem cell transplant recipients.

Dr Suzy Morton is a Consultant in clinical haematology and blood transfusion at the Queen Elizabeth Hospital, University Hospitals Birmingham and NHS Blood and Transplant. She is the transfusion representative on the West Midlands Haematology Specialty Training Committee and the educational lead for haematology SpRs at QEHB. Suzy is a transfusion representative on the BSH Education committee.

British Society for Haematology Annual Scientific Meeting Guidelines Session 2022

Dr Katie Hands presents on the Good Practice Paper Preoperative patient blood management during the SARS-CoV-2 pandemic. 

Katie Hands is a Consultant Haematologist with the Scottish National Blood Transfusion Service (SNBTS) based at Ninewells Hospital, Dundee. She is a member of the British Society for Haematology Transfusion Task Force and is involved in the preparation of evidence-based guidelines relating to all aspects of blood transfusion in the United Kingdom. 

British Society for Haematology Annual Scientific Meeting Guidelines Session 2022

Dr Austin Kulasekararaj presents on the Myelodysplastic syndromes covering the BSH Guidelines on the diagnosis and prognosis of adult myelodysplastic syndromes and Guidelines on the management of adult myelodysplastic syndromes.

Dr Austin Kulasekararaj is a Consultant Haematologist at the King's College Hospital London. His special interests are adult myelodysplastic syndromes, acute leukaemia and aplastic anaemia.

British Society for Haematology Annual Scientific Meeting Guidelines Session 2022

Dr Dima ElSharkawi presents the Guideline on the Diagnosis and Management of Waldenstrom Macroglobulinaemia.

Dr Dima El-Sharkawi is a Consultant Haematologist and part of the haematological malignancy diagnostic services at the Royal Marsden NHS Foundation Trust. She is also a Trustee for the UK Charity for Waldenström macroglobulinaemia (WMUK). Dr El-Sharkawi's special interests are in CLL, rare leukaemias and lymphomas including Waldenström macroglobulinaemia.

Dr Nilima Parry Jones and Dr Renata Walewska present a podcast on the Guideline for the treatment of chronic lymphocytic leukaemia

Both Dr Parry Jones and Dr Walewska discuss the guideline in three main parts:

1) Choice of treatment for CLL in front line and relapsed settings

2) Impact to immune dysregulation in respect of anti-microbial prophylaxis and vaccination

3) Challenges of the Covid pandemic, the evolving evidence on vaccine response, treatment of patients with Covid and antiviral and monoclonal antibodies 

Dr Nilima Parry-Jones is a Consultant Haematologist at the Aneurin Bevan Local Health, Wales and an executive member of the UK CLL Forum. She is the Chair of the BSH Haematology Oncology Task Force.

Dr Renata Walewska is a Consultant Haematologist at the Royal Bournemouth Hospital and Chair of the UK CLL Forum.

Dr Noemi Roy and Dr Roberta Russo present a podcast on the The use of next-generation sequencing in the diagnosis of rare inherited anaemias: A Joint BSH/EHA Good Practice Paper

Dr Roy and Dr Russo discuss the good practice paper in three main parts:

1) Focus on rare anaemias: ( Diamond-Blackfan Anaemia, Congenial dyserythropoietic anaemia (CDA), Sideroblastic anaemia and Red cell membrane/cation leaking and enzyme disorders

2) Next generation sequencing (NGS)

3) How and why we need to interpret genetic variants carefully 

The use of next-generation sequencing (NGS) in the diagnosis of rare inherited anaemias is increasingly common, as evidenced by a growing number of publications describing its clinical utility.^1-6 Excluding disorders of globin synthesis, rare anaemias include Diamond–Blackfan anaemia (DBA), congenital dyserythropoietic anaemias (CDA), congenital sideroblastic anaemias (CSA) and disorders of red cell membrane and enzymes. Other forms of genetic anaemias can also be considered while establishing NGS panels, in particular genetic syndromes where anaemia comprises one of the constellation of symptoms.

Dr Noemi Roy is a Consultant Haematologist at Oxford University Hospitals NSH Foundation Trust and honorary senior clinical lecturer in haematology at the University of Oxford. She is a BSH General Haematology Task Force member and Chair for the Guidelines Executive committee for the European Hematology Association. She is the rare anaemia representative at the National Haemoglobinopathy Panel. Her main interests are haemoglobinopathies and rare inherited anaemias, and in particular the genetic investigation of inherited anaemias, including whole genome sequencing.

Dr Roberta Russo is an assistant professor in medical genetics at the University of Naples "Federico II". She has dealt with the study of the genetics of rare disorders, particularly hereditary anaemias, since 2008. Her main interest was the study of Congenital Dyserythropoietic Anaemias (CDAs), mainly CDA type II, genetics and genomics of red cell anaemias and blood cell defects . She contributed first hand to the identification of the causative genes of rare anaemias. Subsequently, she became one of the leading scientists for the genetics and epidemiology of CDAs. Since 2015, she has been dealing with the application of next generation sequencing to the clinical and medical definition of patients affected by this conditions. In 2011, she won the Young Investigator Award by the American Journal of Hematology for her study on the epidemiology of this disorder.