Fourteenth biannual report of the Cochrane Haematological Malignancies Group--focus on autologous stem cell transplantation in hematological malignancies.

This 14th biannual report of the Cochrane Haematological Malignancies Group (CHMG) highlights recently published randomized controlled trials (RCTs) in the field of hemato-oncology, covering the publication period from March 2011 to October 2011. Implications for clinical practice and methodological aspects are the main principles for selecting trials for this report. Studies were identified by electronic search of MEDLINE using a broad search filter that covers all topics in hemato-oncology combined with a highly sensitive search filter for randomized trials (Cochrane Handbook for Systematic Reviews of Interventions). The electronic search of the OVID MEDLINE database was conducted on October 25, 2011. In this present summary of key features of recent RCTs, we focus on autologous stem cell transplantation (ASCT). Of the 65 identified RCTs, 3 trials that evaluated different aspects of ASCT in hematologic malignant patients are presented in detail (1–3). Six further trials of high clinical importance are presented in short version (4–9).