Please select the eligibility criteria that correspond to the clinical trial below.
Title: Stroke With Transfusions Changing to Hydroxyurea
Brief Summary: The purpose of this study is to compare standard therapy (transfusions and chelation) with alternative therapy (hydroxyurea and phlebotomy) for the prevention of secondary stroke and management of iron overload in children with sickle cell anemia (SCA).


Options:
A: Inclusion Criteria for the Observational and Trial Cohorts:

* Hemoglobin diagnosis of SS (two copies of the hemoglobin S gene), SC (one copy of the hemoglobin S gene and one copy of the hemoglobin C gene), or S-β thalassemia (β+ or β0)
* No clinically apparent ACS
* No prior participation in either part of the study

Inclusion Criteria for the Trial Cohort, in addition to the above criteria:

* sPLA2 level greater than 100 ng/mL within the same 24-hour window that coincides with fever and chest radiograph negative for new pulmonary infiltrate within the last 12 hours of the 24-hour window
* Fever greater than 38.0º C within the same 24-hour window that coincides with elevated sPLA2 level (greater than 100 ng/mL) and chest radiograph negative for new pulmonary infiltrate within the last 12 hours of the 24-hour window
* Chest radiograph negative for new pulmonary infiltrate within the last 12 hours of the 24-hour window of an abnormal sPLA2 level and fever
* Hemoglobin levels equal or less than 10 g/dL at time of study entry
* Informed consent of parent(s) or legal guardian; informed consent or assent of participant as applicable

Exclusion Criteria for Observational and Trial Cohorts:

* Existing diagnosis of a new pulmonary infiltrate diagnosed by chest radiography (pleural effusion not obscuring lung parenchyma will not exclude the person from the study)
* Any coexisting medical condition for which the physician feels that a transfusion may be needed within 24 hours (e.g., severe anemia, stroke)
* Red Blood Cell (RBC) transfusion in the 60 days before study entry
* Unwillingness to sign consent form, or if a minor, unwillingness of parent/guardian to sign consent form
* Treatment with any investigational drug or device in the 30 days before study entry (hydroxyurea is allowable)
* History of alloimmunization that would prevent the participant from receiving blood within 8 hours of eligibility for study entry or history of a life-threatening transfusion reaction
* Objection to transfusion for religious or other reasons from either the participant or guardian
* History of treatment with systemic steroids within 1 week of study entry (inhaled steroids are acceptable)
* Pregnant
B: Inclusion Criteria:

* Pediatric subjects with severe forms of sickle cell anemia (HbSS, HbSβ0 thalassemia, HbSOArab)
* Age range of 5.0-18.9 years, inclusive, at the time of study entry
* Initial (primary) completed overt clinical stroke after the age of one year (12 months) with documented infarction on brain computed tomography (CT) or magnetic resonance imaging (MRI)
* At least 18 months of chronic monthly erythrocyte transfusions since primary stroke
* Transfusional iron overload, defined as a previously documented liver iron concentration (LIC) greater than or equal to 5.0 mg Fe per gram of dry weight liver or serum ferritin greater than or equal to 500 ng/mL on two independent measurements
* Adequate monthly erythrocyte transfusions with average HbS less than or equal to 45% (the upper limit of the established academic community standard) in the 6 months prior to study entry
* Parent or guardian willing and able to provide informed consent with verbal or written assent from the child (less than 18 years of age) or subject willing and able to provide informed consent (older than 18 years of age)
* Ability to comply with study-related treatments, evaluations, and follow-up

Exclusion Criteria:

* Inability to receive or tolerate chronic red blood cell (RBC) transfusion therapy, due to any of the following:

  1. Multiple RBC alloantibodies making cross-matching difficult or impossible
  2. RBC autoantibodies making cross-matching difficult or impossible
  3. Religious objection to transfusions that preclude their chronic use
  4. Non-compliance with transfusions in the 6 months prior to study entry (temporary exclusion)
* Inability to take or tolerate daily oral hydroxyurea, due to any of the following:

  1. Known allergy to hydroxyurea therapy
  2. HIV infection
  3. Cancer
  4. Pregnant or breastfeeding
  5. Previous stem cell transplant or other myelosuppressive therapy
* Clinical and laboratory evidence of hypersplenism, due to any of the following:

  1. Palpable splenomegaly greater than 5 cm below the left costal margin and
  2. Transfusion requirement greater than 250 mL/kg in the 12 months prior to study entry
* Abnormal laboratory values at initial evaluation (temporary exclusion):

  1. Pre-transfusion hemoglobin concentration less than 7.0 gm/dL
  2. White blood cell (WBC) count less than 3.0 x 109/L
  3. Absolute neutrophil count (ANC) less than 1.5 x 109/L
  4. Platelet count less than 100 x 109/L
  5. Serum creatinine more than twice the upper limit for age OR greater than or equal to 1.0 mg/dL
* Current participation in other therapeutic clinical trials
* Current use of other therapeutic agents for SCA (e.g., arginine, decitabine, magnesium)
* Any condition or chronic illness, such as a positive tuberculin (PPD) test, which in the opinion of the study physician makes study participation ill-advised
* Inability or unwillingness to complete required screening studies, including blood tests, brain MRI/magnetic resonance angiography (MRA), and liver biopsy
* A sibling enrolled in SWiTCH
C: No eligibility criteria
D: Inclusion Criteria:

* Majority fetal and sickle (FS or SF) hemoglobin pattern confirmed centrally by electrophoresis (screening may begin at 7 months of age)

Exclusion Criteria:

* Chronic transfusion therapy
* Cancer
* Less than 5th percentile (10th percentile for the pilot study) height, weight, or head circumference for age
* Severe developmental delay (e.g., cerebral palsy or other mental retardation, Grade III/IV intraventricular hemorrhage)
* Stroke with neurological deficit
* Surgical splenectomy
* Participating in other clinical intervention trials
* Probable or known diagnosis of Hemoglobin S-Hereditary Persistence of Fetal Hemoglobin
* Known hemoglobin S-beta plus thalassemia (hemoglobin A present)
* Any condition or chronic illness, which in the opinion of the principal investigator, makes participation unadvised or unsafe
* Inability or unwillingness to complete baseline (pre-enrollment) studies, including blood or urine specimen collection, liver-spleen scan, abdominal sonogram, neurological examination, neuropsychological testing, or transcranial Doppler ultrasound (interpretable study not required, but confirmed velocity greater than 200 cm/sec results in ineligibility)
* Previous or current treatment with hydroxyurea (HU) or another anti-sickling drug
* The following exclusion criteria are transient; patients can be re-evaluated for eligibility:

  1. Hemoglobin less than 6.0 gm/dL
  2. Reticulocyte count less than 80,000/cu mm if hemoglobin is less than 9 gm/dL
  3. Neutrophil count less than 2,000/cu mm
  4. Platelet count less than 130,000/cu mm
  5. Blood transfusion in the 2 months prior to study entry unless HbA is less than 10%
  6. ALT greater than twice the upper limit of normal
  7. Ferritin less than 10 ng/ml
  8. Serum creatinine greater than twice the upper limit of normal for age
  9. Bayley standardized mental score below 70

Answer: B