MÁLAGA 22 Oct. (EUROPA PRESS) –
A multidisciplinary team from the Malaga Biomedical Research Institute and Nanomedicine Platform (Ibima Bionand Platform) has published the results of its research on the usefulness of the basophil activation test, a laboratory test using a blood sample, to diagnose allergic patients. to chemotherapeutic agents.
The work has been published in the prestigious international journal Allergy and is led by researchers from the Allergic Diseases to Drugs and Allergens group whose responsible researchers are María José Torres and Cristobalina Mayorga. In addition, it has had the participation of physicians from the Clinical Management Units of Medical Oncology and Hospital Pharmacy of the Regional Hospital of Malaga, the Catalan Institute of Oncology and St Bartholomew’s Hospital in London.
The incidence and prevalence of oncological diseases has increased in recent years and colon-rectum (16%), prostate (12%) and breast (12%) tumors are the most common in Spain. Platinum salts and taxanes are the best treatment option for these tumors, but their increasing use has led to an increase in hypersensitivity reactions to them.
The accurate diagnosis of hypersensitivity reactions to chemotherapy drugs is essential to treat each cancer patient in the most appropriate way possible, since an allergy label determines the avoidance of the suspected drug and the use of second-line treatment, which is less effective and more toxic and expensive, with the consequent impact on the quality and life expectancy of patients.
On the other hand, desensitization, a procedure that causes temporary tolerance to the drug thanks to its progressive administration until the therapeutic dose is reached, is an effective tool in the management of hypersensitivity reactions. This option is of great interest in oncology, since it allows first-choice oncological treatments to be maintained.
However, it is a long, expensive and risk-free procedure, which needs to be performed in specialized hospitalization units with sufficient resources to manage possible reactions and under monitoring.
For all these reasons, it is essential to make an accurate diagnosis that avoids the administration of second-line treatments or unnecessary desensitization in patients who are not really allergic.
Unfortunately, making a correct diagnosis of hypersensitivity reactions to chemotherapy drugs is very complex, due to the pharmacological and toxicological characteristics of these drugs, the comorbidities of cancer patients and the heterogeneity of the immunological mechanisms involved.
Currently, diagnostic procedures are based on skin tests, as well as provocation tests, which consist of administering increasing doses of the drug to the patient until the actual dose used in the treatment of their disease is reached. However, these latter tests can pose a risk to the patient, since they may develop an allergic reaction again upon contact with the drug.
On the contrary, laboratory tests such as the basophil activation test, which is performed with a blood sample, are a necessary and promising alternative option that should be implemented in diagnostic protocols, since they do not present any risk to the patient.
Therefore, for years, this research group has been making a significant effort in the application, standardization and improvement of this technique in the diagnosis of drug reactions.
Among the new contributions of the team, the evaluation of the usefulness of the basophil activation test in the diagnosis of hypersensitivity reactions to platinum salts and taxanes in a large population of patients stands out, since until now only data obtained in a limited number of patients.
The results indicate that this test is a promising tool for diagnosing allergic reactions caused by specific antibodies to platinum salts, and can detect up to 80% of these patients, which could complement the results of skin tests to reduce the need for provocation tests with the drug in a considerable number of patients.
This work is part of research projects led by Dr. Gádor Bogas – Action B contract for Research Clinicians, Ministry of Health and Consumption of the Andalusian Health Service – and Dr. Adriana Ariza – Action C contract, Nicolás Monardes Program, Ministry of Health and Consumption of the Andalusian Health Service -.
Both researchers, belonging to the Ibima Bionand Platform’s Allergic Diseases to Drugs and Allergens group, headed by Dr. Torres and Dr. Mayorga, have indicated that “the results obtained in this work support the future inclusion of this method in the diagnostic procedure.” usual, since its use in daily clinical practice would have avoided performing a provocation test in all patients with a positive basophil activation test, which could translate into a direct benefit for patients, who will have a diagnosis accurate following a safer procedure.
The next step in which the group is currently immersed within this line of research is to analyze the usefulness of the basophil activation test in reactions in which other immunological mechanisms are involved, as well as to identify biomarkers that predict a reaction after exposure to the drug or during a desensitization procedure.
In the words of the researchers, “the results obtained in this work, as well as the new results that are being obtained, will have a positive impact on the population and health systems. An accurate diagnostic confirmation of hypersensitivity reactions to chemotherapy drugs is essential for the “correct therapeutic management of oncology patients, which may translate into an increase in survival and quality of life of patients.”
