Christopher J. Lemieux

Feb 24, 2024 | nature.com | Jennifer White |Christopher J. Lemieux |Mohamed Elemary |Igor Novitzky-Basso |Michael Kennah |Dennis Dong Hwan Kim | +5 more

Acute graft versus host disease (aGVHD) is a complication of allogeneic hematopoietic stem cell transplant (HCT) and is associated with significant morbidity and mortality. Steroid refractory aGVHD (SR-aGVHD) carries a particularly grim prognosis. Ruxolitinib has shown promise for treatment of SR-aGVHD in a phase 3 trial; however, safety and efficacy data outside of the clinical trial setting is lacking. We performed a multicenter retrospective study to examine the response to ruxolitinib and its efficacy in patients with SR-aGVHD. We included 59 patients treated with ruxolitinib for SR-aGVHD between 2015 and 2022. Of these 59 patients, 36 patients (61.0%) achieved a complete (CR) or partial response (PR) at 28 days, while 31 patients (52.5%) obtained a CR/PR at day 56. Patients that achieved a CR or PR at day 28 had a higher rate of overall survival (OS; 69.2%), compared with patients that did not (31.6%; p = 0.037). OS at 12 months was 41.5%, with a median OS duration of 5.3 months. Failure free survival (FFS) at 12 months was 29.1%, with a median FFS of 2.6 months. Overall, this real-world experience data support ruxolitinib as the standard of care for SR-aGVHD in a non-controlled trial population.

Jan 3, 2024 | lexology.com | Christopher J. Lemieux |Thomas Taylor

Calvin J. Hill, Individually and as the Executor of the Succession of Elnora Johnson Hill v. TMR Exploration, Inc., Park Exploration, Inc., and Vitol Resources, Inc. 2022-0744 (La. App. 1 Cir. 12/19/2023) 2023 WL 8742973:Under La. R.S. 9:2773, Contractors Are Only Sureties to the “Proprietor” Regarding Pile-Driving Claims. Hill v. TMR Exploration, Inc., provides crucial insights into legal challenges arising from subsurface trespass claims during oil well drilling.

Dec 7, 2023 | lexology.com | Christopher J. Lemieux |Mary Kramer

First Circuit Upholds Five-Year Peremptive Period for Construction-Related Claims under Two Separate StatutesTwo recent First Circuit cases examine the five-year preemptive period applicable to design professionals and contractors in the context of two different statutes, namely La R.S. 9:2772 and La. R.S. 9:5607. In Conti Enterprises, Inc. v. Providence/.GSE Associates, LLC, Robert E.