Approximately 60 days after anti-CD19-CAR T-cell infusion, when the adverse
events (AEs) and the subsequent aGVHD disappeared, patients who obtained CR or
CR with incomplete count recovery (Cri) and had previously preserved frozen stem
cells, received DSI (DSI group) as maintenance therapy. The other patients who
reached CR/CRi received DLI (DLI group) as maintenance therapy. The cells in DLI
therapy were not previously frozen, but were collected by hemapheresis without
mobilization by granulocyte colony stimulating factor (G-CSF) in every DLI
maintenance therapy. All DSI/DLI was the same donor used for the original
hematopoietic stem cell transplant. The interval time between the two DSI/DLI
therapies was generally 1 month. If the patients develop severe aGVHD, DSI/DLI
maintenance therapy would be discontinued. Moreover, one patient who reached
CR/Cri received a second allo-HSCT following DLI therapy (Fig. 1). One patient who did not reach
CR/CRi after anti-CD19-CAR T-cell therapy received DSI as a salvage therapy. Two
other patients who did not reach CR/Cri died because of disease progression
within a short time.