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Objectives: To evaluate the efficacy and tolerability of an attenuated immunochemotherapy regimen based on cytarabine, etoposide and dexamethasone plus rituximab (R‐mini‐CYVE) in patients with relapsed or refractory B‐cell non–Hodgkin's lymphoma (NHL). Methods: We included pretreated adult patients with B‐cell NHL who were ineligible for high‐dose immunochemotherapy (HDT). Cytarabine and etoposide were given at four different dose levels, depending on the patient's frailty. Up to 8 cycles were administered. Results: Between 2013 and 2019, 56 patients with diffuse large B‐cell lymphoma (n = 45, 80%) and indolent B‐cell lymphoma (n = 11, 20%) were included. Median age was 75 (range: 36‐88). Nineteen patients (35%) had a performance status ≥2. Patients received a median of 4 cycles of R‐mini‐CYVE. The objective response and the complete response rates were 50% and 33%, respectively. Median progression‐free survival and overall survival times were 5.7 (95% CI: 0.5‐10.9) and 14.7 (95% CI: 3.5‐25.9) months, respectively. Grade ≥3 anaemia, thrombocytopenia and neutropenia occurred in 44%, 55% and 60% of the patients, respectively. The most frequent non‐haematological grade ≥3 adverse events were sepsis (21%), fatigue (13%) and cytarabine‐related neurotoxicity (5%). Conclusion: R‐mini‐CYVE demonstrated a meaningful antitumour efficacy and an acceptable safety profile in patients with relapsed/refractory B‐cell NHL who were ineligible for HDT. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The coronavirus disease (COVID‐19) pandemic has posed several challenges to the hematology community to re‐organize the medical care of patients with hematologic malignancies. Whereas the oncology societies favored a more or less conservative approach which considered the possibility of delaying treatment administration on a case‐by‐case basis, the hematology community guidelines were less stringent and recommended adequate individualized regimens. As countries are de‐escalating the lockdown and the medical community is unable to foresee the end of the current outbreak will and whether the pandemic would eventually come back as a seasonal infection, there is interest in screening of patients with hematology malignancies with COVID‐19 instead of limiting access to curative treatments. The rapidly accumulating knowledge about COVID‐19 allows a better understanding of the diagnostic tools that may be potentially used in screening. Herein, we briefly review the pathophysiology of COVID‐19, the rationale of screening of patients with hematologic malignancies, tools for screening, and available guidelines. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

During the ongoing global pandemic of coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19), the benefit of treating patients with cancer must be weighed against the COVID-19 infection risks to patients, staff and society. Prostate cancer is one of the most common cancers among men and raises particular interest during the pandemic as recent reports show that the TMPRSS2 (and other serine proteases), which facilitate the entry, replication and budding of the virion from a cell, can be inhibited using androgen deprivation therapy. Nevertheless, patients with metastatic prostate cancer commonly receive chemotherapy which may compromise their immune system. This paper aims to address the current status of the COVID-19 in patients with cancer overall and suggests an optimal approach to patients with metastatic prostate cancer. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]