Background. Relapsed/refractory high grade NHL is a very aggressive pathology characterised by a poor prognosis. High dose therapy followed by peripheral blood stem cell (PBSC) rescue is to date the gold standard therapy. The results of high dose therapy are influenced by remission status after II line therapy as patients who undergo transplantation in complete response have better progression free survival with respect to those in partial response. While Rituximab+chemotherapy has become the approach of choice in 1st line-therapy, this type of schedule has not yet been largely applied in 2nd line therapy. In the aim of testing the efficacy of 2nd line-combined immuno-chemotherapy we designed a protocol including Rituximab + IEV/MINE.

Methods. The planned treatment consists of 3 cycles of IEV or MINE (>65 y patients), plus Rituximab (375 mg/sqm) given on day +1 and on day +14 every cycle. G-CSF was administered from day 7 to ANC recovery and was continued until the CD 34+ collection after the third cycle. From April 2002 to July 2008 30 consecutive patients – 19 males and 11 females, median age 57 y (range 21–73 y) with refractory (12) and relapsed (18) Diffuse Large B Cell Lymphoma (DLBCL) entered the study. According to IPI score 20/30 patients were intermediatehigh risk; 21/30 had extranodal disease.

Results. 27 patients completed treatment and are evaluable; 3 pts are not evaluable because of lethal infection after Ist cicle (2pts) and lost to follow up (1pt). 21/27 (78%) were responders: 12 (44%) achieved CR, 9 (33%) PR, while 6 progressive disease (PD) were withdrawn. Hematological toxicity including WHO grade III or IV neutropenia, anemia and thrombocytopenia was recorded in 19, 8 and 14 pts, respectively. Target CD 34 harvest was reached in 19/27 (70%) pts with CD 34+ median value 7,03 × 106/Kg. Among the responders 4 pts failed CD 34 harvest. 17/27 (63%) patients underwent transplantion, 11 autologous stem cell transplantation (ASCT) and 6 (>60 y) reduced intensity allogeneic-SCT. Of transplanted patients 4 (2 in CR post Mini Allo-SCT, 2 in relapse post ASCT) died 6, 2,10 and 10 months after transplantation, respectively. The remaining 13 (4 mini-alloSCT and 9 ASCT) are alive in CR which is lasting for 23 months median time (11–73). As of July 2008 15/27 (55%) patients are alive: 14 CR and 1 PR. Median follow up post R-IEV/MINE is 28 months (range 12–77), PFS was 38% and median OS is 32 months (range 7–90).

Conclusions. Our experience, if limited to a small series of patients, shows that the addition of Rituximab to second line chemotherapy:

  • increases response rate even in adverse IPI score cases,

  • allows to obtain a good CD 34 harvest,

  • represents an effective in vivo purging agent.

Topics:
lymphoma, non-hodgkin, rituximab, autologous stem cell transplant, brachial plexus neuritis, diffuse large b-cell lymphoma, transplantation, allopurinol, anemia, cancer immunotherapy, chemotherapy regimen

Disclosures: No relevant conflicts of interest to declare.

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2008, The American Society of Hematology
2008
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