Search

The standard treatment of relapsed/refractory diffuse large B-cell lymphoma ( DLBCL) in frail elderly patients has not been established. A variation was made on rituximab (R), cyclophosphamide (C), etoposide (E), procarbazine and prednisone (P), substituting vorinostat (V) for procarbazine. Patients ≥aged 60 years with relapsed/refractory DLBCL, not candidates for autologous stem cell transplantation, were treated R- CVEP [R 375 mg/m2 intravenously ( IV), day 1; C 600 mg/m2 IV days 1, 8: E 70 mg/m2 IV day 1, 140 mg/m2 days 2, 3 orally ( PO); V (300 vs. 400 mg) PO and P 60 mg/m2 PO days 1-10] every 28 d for six cycles. Quality of life (QoL) was assessed in addition to response. Thirty patients (median age 76 years, 69-88) were enrolled (one died before treatment). Maximum tolerated dose ( MTD) for V was 300 mg. For 23 patients at MTD (six phase I + 17 phase II), two were discontinued for toxicity, one withdrew consent, eight achieved complete response (35%), five achieved partial response (22%) and seven progressed (25%). Median overall survival was 17·5 months. Median progression-free survival was 9·2 months. Nine patients are alive. QoL declined during treatment but improved above baseline for patients who completed treatment. In conclusion, R- CVEP was tolerated at MTD and produced durable responses with improved QoL. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

T-cell lymphomas (TCLs) are characterised by poor responses to therapy with brief durations of remissions. An early phase study of pralatrexate has demonstrated dramatic activity in patients with relapsed/refractory disease. Of the first 20 lymphoma patients treated, 16 had B-cell lymphoma and four had refractory aggressive TCL. All four patients with TCL achieved a complete remission. Patients with B-cell lymphoma achieved stable disease at best. For each TCL patient, the response was more durable than their best response with chemotherapy. This early experience is the first to document this unique activity of pralatrexate in TCL. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]