Treatment Outcome of Aggressive Lymphoma with CyclOBEAP (CHOP-Like + Etoposide and Bleomycin): Results of Multicenter Trial.

Introduction: To improve treatment outcome in aggressive lymphoma, a CHOP-like regimen with added etoposide and bleomycin was studied.

Patients and Methods: Between April 1997 and March 2003, 126 consecutive patients (pts) with aggressive lymphoma of low-intermediate to high risk disease according to the age adjusted International Prognostic Index (IPI), age<61 years, and performance status(ECOG)<3 were treated with CyclOBEAP. MCL and ATL/L were excluded from this study. CyclOBEAP was a weekly protocol for a total period of 12 weeks. It consisted of doxorubicin 50mg/m2 given every 2 weeks in combination with either cyclophosphamide 1,000mg/m2 (weeks 1, 5, 9) or etoposide 70mg/m2 qd x4 (weeks 3, 7, 11). During the alternative weeks non-myelosuppressive vincristine 1.4mg/m2 (max. 2.0mg/body) was given either with bleomycin 10mg/m2 (weeks 2, 6, 10) or alone (weeks 4,8,12). Prednisolone 40mg/m2 was administered daily for 14 days during weeks 1–2, 5–6, and 9–10. Protocol dose intensity relative to that of CHOP was 1.5 for DXR, VCR and 1.0 for CPA. G-CSF was prophylactically used. Pts who had had a bulky disease at presentation received 40Gy of local irradiation after chemotherapy.

Results: One hundred twenty-six pts were enrolled and 5 were excluded from analysis; 3 due to change of diagnosis ( ATL/L, Hodgkin lymphoma, germ cell tumor), 1 due to PS4 and the other due to drop out. In 121 eligible pts (DLBCL 94, PTCL 11, ALCL 7, nasal NK/T 4, others 5), 7 pts did not complete the full course of the treatment because of pneumonia (3), liver damage (1), intrathoracic hemorrhage (1), and PD response at 8th week (2). Relative given dose intensity was 0.94 for DXR, 0.95 for CPA, 0.86 for VCR, 0.94 for VP16, and 0.96 for BLM. All pts were evaluated. CR (including cCR) was obtained in 106 (88%), PR in 11 and NC/PD in 4. No treatment related death was observed. With a median follow-up of 56 months, 5yr overall survival (OS) rate is 72% and progression-free survival (PFS) rate is 62%. The 5yr OS and PFS within the subgroups defined by IPI and in pts with DLBCL and PTCL are not significantly different (data shown in the table). WHO grade 4 neutropenia was observed in 91 pts and thrombocytepenia in 13 pts. 66 pts required 2 or more units of red cell transfusions (2 – 66 units). Liver damage of grade 3 to 4 was seen in 3 pts.

Conclusions: Addition of etoposide and bleomycin to CHOP drugs may enhance the effect of CHOP for aggressive lymphoma, encouraging comparative study between the two treatments.