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The ECHELON-1 trial demonstrated the effectiveness of brentuximab vedotin (BV) in combination with doxorubicin, vinblastine, and dacarbazine as a frontline treatment regimen in classical Hodgkin lymphoma. However, peripheral neuropathy (PN) is common with this regimen, occurring in up to two-thirds of patients. While standard prescribing information recommends BV dose modification at the onset of grade 2 PN, management strategies for PN are not well-defined. Most commonly, clinicians dose reduce or discontinue BV, vinblastine, or both. We review evidence-based and practical approaches for managing peripheral neuropathy, emphasizing early detection and dose modification., Competing Interests: Declaration of Competing Interest Jeremy Abramson declares support for the present manuscript (no payments made)– Seagen; grants or contracts from any entity – Seagen, Merck, Mustang Bio, Cellectis, Bristol Myers Squibb, Genentech/Roche; consulting fees – Bristol Myers Squibb, AstraZeneca, AbbVie, Genentech/Roche, Kite Pharma/Gilead, Seagen, Interius, BeiGene, Cellectar, Lilly, Incyte, Caribou Biosciences, Takeda, Janssen, Epizyme, Century Therapeutics, MorphoSys, Mustang Bio, Ono Pharma, Kymera; payment or honoraria for lectures, presentations, speakers bureaus, manuscript writing or educational events – Genmab, Bristol Myers Squibb, AstraZeneca, Regeneron, AbbVie. Robert Stuver declares no conflicts related to this manuscript. Alex Herrera declares grants or contracts from any entity – Bristol Myers Squibb, Genentech, Merck, Seagen, AstraZeneca, Karyopharm, Kite Pharma, Gilead Sciences, AstraZeneca, ADC Therapeutics; consulting fees – Bristol Myers Squibb, Genentech, Merck, Seagen, AstraZeneca, Karyopharm, ADC Therapeutics, Takeda, Tubulis, Regeneron, Genmab, Pfizer, Caribou Biosciences, Adicet Bio, AbbVie, Allogene. Emily Patterson declares no conflicts related to this manuscript. Yi-Ping Wen declares no conflicts related to this manuscript. Alison Moskowitz declares grants or contracts from any entity – Leukemia Lymphoma Society – Career Development Program, Incyte, Merck, Secura Bio, Bristol Myers Squibb, Syndax, Seagen, Genentech, Kite Pharma, Gilead Sciences, AstraZeneca, ADC Therapeutics; consulting fees – Bristol Myers Squibb, Genentech, Merck, Seagen, AstraZeneca, ADC Therapeutics, Takeda, Genmab, Pfizer, Caribou Biosciences, Adicet Bio, AbbVie, Allogene Therapeutics; payment or honoraria for lectures, presentations, speakers bureaus, manuscript writing, or educational events – Affimed, Bio Ascend, Canadian Heme Conference, Janpix, Physician Education Resource, Academic Medical Education, BP, Great Debates & Updates, Harborside Press, Imbrium Therapeutics, International Symposium on Hodgkin Lymphoma, Kyowa Hakko Pharma, Medscape, Merck Sharp & Bohue, Ahompr, Seagen, Takeda, Tessa, Triangle Insights Group, UpToDate, WebMD; participation on a data safety monitoring board or advisory board – Affimed, Janpix, Seagen, Kyowa Hakko Pharma., (Copyright © 2024 The Authors. Published by Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.)

Background: Incorporating brentuximab vedotin into the treatment of advanced-stage classic Hodgkin's lymphoma improves outcomes in adult and pediatric patients. However, brentuximab vedotin increases the toxic effects of treatment in adults, more than half of pediatric patients who receive the drug undergo consolidative radiation, and relapse remains a challenge. Programmed death 1 blockade is effective in Hodgkin's lymphoma, including in preliminary studies involving previously untreated patients., Methods: We conducted a phase 3, multicenter, open-label, randomized trial involving patients at least 12 years of age with stage III or IV newly diagnosed Hodgkin's lymphoma. Patients were randomly assigned to receive brentuximab vedotin with doxorubicin, vinblastine, and dacarbazine (BV+AVD) or nivolumab with doxorubicin, vinblastine, and dacarbazine (N+AVD). Prespecified patients could receive radiation therapy directed to residual metabolically active lesions. The primary end point was progression-free survival, defined as the time from randomization to the first observation of progressive disease or death from any cause., Results: Of 994 patients who underwent randomization, 970 were included in the intention-to-treat population for efficacy analyses. At the second planned interim analysis, with a median follow-up of 12.1 months, the threshold for efficacy was crossed, indicating that N+AVD significantly improved progression-free survival as compared with BV+AVD (hazard ratio for disease progression or death, 0.48; 99% confidence interval [CI], 0.27 to 0.87; two-sided P = 0.001). Owing to the short follow-up time, we repeated the analysis with longer follow-up; with a median follow-up of 2.1 years (range, 0 to 4.2 years), the 2-year progression-free survival was 92% (95% CI, 89 to 94) with N+AVD, as compared with 83% (95% CI, 79 to 86) with BV+AVD (hazard ratio for disease progression or death, 0.45; 95% CI, 0.30 to 0.65). Overall, 7 patients received radiation therapy. Immune-related adverse events were infrequent with nivolumab; brentuximab vedotin was associated with more treatment discontinuation., Conclusions: N+AVD resulted in longer progression-free survival than BV+AVD in adolescents and adults with stage III or IV advanced-stage classic Hodgkin's lymphoma and had a better side-effect profile. (Funded by the National Cancer Institute of the National Institutes of Health and others; S1826 ClinicalTrials.gov number, NCT03907488.)., (Copyright © 2024 Massachusetts Medical Society.)

Background: Intensified systemic chemotherapy has the highest primary cure rate for advanced-stage, classical Hodgkin lymphoma but this comes with a cost of severe and potentially life long, persisting toxicities. With the new regimen of brentuximab vedotin, etoposide, cyclophosphamide, doxorubicin, dacarbazine, and dexamethasone (BrECADD), we aimed to improve the risk-to-benefit ratio of treatment of advanced-stage, classical Hodgkin lymphoma guided by PET after two cycles., Methods: This randomised, multicentre, parallel, open-label, phase 3 trial was done in 233 trial sites across nine countries. Eligible patients were adults (aged ≤60 years) with newly diagnosed, advanced-stage, classical Hodgkin lymphoma (ie, Ann Arbor stage III/IV, stage II with B symptoms, and either one or both risk factors of large mediastinal mass and extranodal lesions). Patients were randomly assigned (1:1) to four or six cycles (21-day intervals) of escalated doses of etoposide (200 mg/m 2 intravenously on days 1-3), doxorubicin (35 mg/m 2 intravenously on day 1), and cyclophosphamide (1250 mg/m 2 intravenously on day 1), and standard doses of bleomycin (10 mg/m 2 intravenously on day 8), vincristine (1·4 mg/m 2 intravenously on day 8), procarbazine (100 mg/m 2 orally on days 1-7), and prednisone (40 mg/m 2 orally on days 1-14; eBEACOPP) or BrECADD, guided by PET after two cycles. Patients and investigators were not masked to treatment assignment. Hierarchical coprimary objectives were to show (1) improved tolerability defined by treatment-related morbidity and (2) non-inferior efficacy defined by progression-free survival with an absolute non-inferiority margin of 6 percentage points of BrECADD compared with eBEACOPP. An additional test of superiority of progression-free survival was to be done if non-inferiority had been established. Analyses were done by intention to treat; the treatment-related morbidity assessment required documentation of at least one chemotherapy cycle. This trial was registered at ClinicalTrials.gov (NCT02661503)., Findings: Between July 22, 2016, and Aug 27, 2020, 1500 patients were enrolled, of whom 749 were randomly assigned to BrECADD and 751 to eBEACOPP. 1482 patients were included in the intention-to-treat analysis. The median age of patients was 31 years (IQR 24-42). 838 (56%) of 1482 patients were male and 644 (44%) were female. Most patients were White (1352 [91%] of 1482). Treatment-related morbidity was significantly lower with BrECADD (312 [42%] of 738 patients) than with eBEACOPP (430 [59%] of 732 patients; relative risk 0·72 [95% CI 0·65-0·80]; p<0·0001). At a median follow-up of 48 months, BrECADD improved progression-free survival with a hazard ratio of 0·66 (0·45-0·97; p=0·035); 4-year progression-free survival estimates were 94·3% (95% CI 92·6-96·1) for BrECADD and 90·9% (88·7-93·1) for eBEACOPP. 4-year overall survival rates were 98·6% (97·7-99·5) and 98·2% (97·2-99·3), respectively., Interpretation: BrECADD guided by PET after two cycles is better tolerated and more effective than eBEACOPP in first-line treatment of adult patients with advanced-stage, classical Hodgkin lymphoma., Funding: Takeda Oncology., Competing Interests: Declaration of interests PB reports consulting fees from Takeda, BMS, Roche, Amgen, Novartis, Celgene, Miltenyi Biotech, and Gilead; payment or honoraria for lectures, presentations, speakers bureaus, manuscript writing, or educational events from Takeda, Novartis, BMS, Roche, MSD, Celgene, Miltenyi Biotech, Gilead, and AbbVie; and funding for scientific research from Takeda Oncology, MSD, and Novartis. JF reports funding and consulting fees from Takeda Oncology and payment or honoraria for lectures, presentations, speakers bureaus, manuscript writing, or educational events from Takeda Oncology and Roche Pharma. RG reports consulting fees from Celgene, Novartis, Roche, Takeda, AbbVie, Astra Zeneca, MSD, Merck, Gilead, Daiichi Sanko, and Sanofi; payment or honoraria for lectures, presentations, speakers bureaus, manuscript writing, or educational events from Celgene, Roche, Merck, Takeda, AstraZeneca, Novartis, Amgen, BMS, MSD, Sandoz, AbbVie, Gilead, Daiichi Sankyo, and Sanofi; support for attending meetings or travel from Roche, Amgen, Janssen, Astra Zeneca, Novartis, BMS, AbbVie, and Daiichi Sankyo; participating on a data safety monitoring board or advisory board for Celgene, Novartis, Roche, BMS, Takeda, AbbVie, Astra Zeneca, Janssen, MSD, Merck, Gilead, Daiichi Sankyo, and Sanofi; and stock or stock options from Novo Nordisk and Lilly. MHe reports payment or honoraria for lectures, presentations, speakers bureaus, manuscript writing, or educational events from Takeda. AH reports payment for speakers bureau, funding, and travel support from, and participation on an advisory board for Takeda. FK reports payment or honoraria for lectures, presentations, speakers bureaus, manuscript writing, or educational events, and support for attending meetings or travel from Takeda. MHä reports consulting fees from Pfizer, Incyte, Roche, Amgen, Sanofi/Aventis, Sobi, Kite/Gilead, Janssen, and BMS and payment or honoraria for lectures, presentations, speakers bureaus, manuscript writing, or educational events from Sobi, Novartis, Kite/Gilead, Falk Foundation, and BMS. UN reports consulting fees for the institution from Janssen-Cilag, Celgene (BMS), Takeda, AstraZeneca, Roche, Novartis, Incyte, BeiGene, Kyowa Kiin, Gileag, and Pierre Fabre; payment or honoraria for lectures, presentations, speakers bureaus, manuscript, writing or educational events for the institution from Celgene (BMS), Novartis, Takeda, and Gilead; support to the institution for attending meetings or travel from Janssen, Roche, Gilead, and Takeda; and participating on a data safety monitoring board or advisory board for Janssen-Cilag, Celgene (BMS), Takeda, AstraZeneca, Roche, Novartis, Incyte, BeiGene, Kyowa Kiin, Gileag, and Pierre Fabre. JM reports consulting fees from MSD. AZi reports payment for presentations from Novartis, Oncopeptides, Takeda, Incyte, and Roche and travel support from Oncopeptides, Roche, and Novartis. AF reports consulting fees and payment or honoraria for lectures, presentations, speakers bureaus, manuscript writing, or educational events from Takeda. AV reports payment or honoraria for lectures, presentations, speakers bureaus, manuscript writing, or educational events from Roche, BMS, and AbbVie; support for attending meetings or travel from Janssen, Kite/Gilead, BMS, and AbbVie; and participation on a data safety monitoring board or advisory board from Roche, BMS, AbbVie, and Kite/Gilead. SS reports travelling support from AbbVie and Jazz and reports support for attending meetings or travel from and having a leadership or fiduciary role in another board, society, committee or advocacy group (paid or unpaid) with Pfizer, Amgen, and Novartis. VV reports payment or honoraria for lectures, presentations, speakers bureaus, manuscript writing, or educational events from Takeda and participation on an advisory board for Takeda and MSD. AK reports payment or honoraria for lectures, presentations, speakers bureaus, manuscript writing, or educational events from Roche, Celgene, AbbVie, Sobi, BMS, and Takeda and support for attending meetings or travel from AbbVie, BeiGene, Sobi, Takeda, EUSA Pharma, Novartis, and Alexion. KT-G reports consulting fees and payment or honoraria for lectures, presentations, speakers bureaus, manuscript writing, or educational events from Takeda. PK reports travel support from Roche Pharmaceuticals and Takeda. BvT reports institutional grants or contracts from Esteve, Merck Sharp & Dohme, Novartis, and Takeda; consulting fees from Allogene, Amgen, BMS/Celgene, Cerus, Gilead Kite, Incyte, IQVIA, Janssen-Cilag, Lilly, Merck Sharp & Dohme, Miltenyi, Novartis, Noscendo, Pentixapharm, Pfizer, Pierre Fabre, Qualworld, Roche, Sobi, and Takeda; payment or honoraria for lectures, presentations, speakers bureaus, manuscript writing, or educational events from AbbVie, AstraZeneca, BMS/Celgene, Gilead Kite, Incyte, Lilly, Merck Sharp & Dohme, Novartis, Roche, and Takeda; support for attending meetings or travel from AbbVie, AstraZeneca, Gilead, Kite, Lilly, Merck Sharp & Dohme, Pierre Fabre, Roche, Takeda, and Novartis; payment from Takeda and Regeneron (INSIGHTFUL study); payment to institution from the Olympia 3 study; and participation on a data safety monitoring board or advisory board for Takeda and Regeneron. SB reports consulting fees from Galapagos; payment or honoraria for lectures, presentations, speakers bureaus, manuscript writing, or educational events and consultation from Takeda; support for attending meetings or travel from Takeda; having a leadership role in another board, society, committee, or advocacy group (paid or unpaid), and holding stock or stock options for Liqomics. KB reports funding and payment or honoraria for lectures, presentations, speakers bureaus, manuscript writing, or educational events from Takeda Oncology. MF reports payment or honoraria for lectures, presentations, speakers bureaus, manuscript writing, or educational events from Celgene, BMS, Takeda, and Janssen. AZo reports Takeda stocks and being an employee of Takeda Oncology. SK reports payment or honoraria for lectures, presentations, speakers bureaus, manuscript writing, or educational events, payment for expert testimony, and support for attending meetings or travel from, and participating on a data safety monitoring board or advisory board for Takeda. All other authors declare no competing interests., (Copyright © 2024 The Author(s). Published by Elsevier Ltd. This is an Open Access article under the CC BY 4.0 license. Published by Elsevier Ltd.. All rights reserved.)

Hodgkin lymphoma is characterized by a high cure rate in the modern era of medicine regardless of stage, but patients suffer from a high risk of comorbidity associated with the administered therapy. The main aim of this review article is to assess and analyze the various comorbidities associated with Hodgkin lymphoma and address the survivorship of patients, including fertility, secondary cancers due to cardiovascular toxicity, and quality of life. Furthermore, this review explores the optimal strategy for detecting relapse. The treatment paradigm of Hodgkin lymphoma has shifted, with a paradigm shift toward achieving a high cure rate and low toxicity as a standard of care in this patient population. Checkpoint inhibitors, especially nivolumab, in combination with chemotherapy are increasingly being studied in the first line of therapy. However, their long-term toxicity remains to be assessed in longer follow-up. In conclusion, Hodgkin lymphoma survivors, regardless of their treatment, should be followed up individually by a multidisciplinary survivorship team in order to detect and properly treat the long-term side effects of therapy.

Background: Brentuximab vedotin (BV) was approved as a therapy for patients with CD30-positive lymphoma in China in 2020 based on the results of multiple clinical trails. Few Chinese real-world data of its use are yet available. Herein, we present the application situation of BV in patients with lymphoma among different hospitals in Henan province in China under real-world conditions., Methods: This was a multicenter and retrospective study in 104 patients with lymphoma who received BV for the first time between August 2020 and September 2022 across eight centers in Henan province. Data on the clinical use, effectiveness and adverse events (AEs) of BV were extracted from patient medical records. Short-term effectiveness was assessed based on objective response rate (ORR), complete response (CR), partial response (PR), stable disease (SD) and progressive disease (PD). Progression-free survival (PFS) and overall survival (OS) were calculated using Kaplan-Meier method. Safety was also evaluated in our study., Results: 104 lymphoma patients were enrolled in our study, who had completed a median of two cycles (range,1-8) of BV-based treatment. A total of 72.1% of patients were relapsed/refractory (R/R) lymphoma, and only 27.9% were previously untreated lymphoma who received BV in frontline treatment settings. Among them who received effectiveness evaluation, the ORR achieved 64.5% (CR 25.8%, PR 38.7%). After a median follow-up of 11 months, the 6-month PFS rate and OS rate achieved 77.2% and 90.1% respectively, and the 12-month PFS rate and OS rate achieved 77.2% and 79.9% respectively. In general, BV-based treatment was well-tolerated, with 38.5% incidence of grade ≥3 AEs. The most commonly reported AEs were hematologic disorders, especially neutropenia, with the incidence reaching 50.0%., Conclusions: BV-based regimens could be a promising therapeutic option with remarkable effectiveness and moderate toxicity in treating Chinese lymphoma patients with CD30 expression., (© 2023 The Authors. Cancer Medicine published by John Wiley & Sons Ltd.)

The JSH Practical Guidelines for Hematological Malignancies, 2018 expanded edition, newly adopted brentuximab vedotin, doxorubicin, vinblastine, dacarbazine(A+AVD)protocol as a standard treatment for advanced-stage classical Hodgkin lymphoma(CHL). Therefore, this retrospective analysis compared 15 patients who received A+AVD therapy with 21 patients who received doxorubicin, bleomycin, vinblastine, dacarbazine(ABVD)therapy. All patients were newly diagnosed with CHL and received induction therapy between April 2015 and June 2022 in our hospital. All except 1 patient of the A+AVD group had advanced-stage CHL. The median age was 63(23-85)years. The estimated 2-year overall survival of the A+AVD group was better than that of the ABVD group which included 6 patients with clinical stage Ⅲ or higher CHL (100% vs 66.7%, p=0.047). In contrast, there was no significant difference in the complete response rate(53.8% vs 100%, p=0.109)between the 2 groups. The overall response rate after first-line treatment(69.2% vs 100%, p=0.255), and the estimated 2-year progression-free survival(70.1% vs 66.7%, p=0.321)between the A+AVD and the ABVD groups were similar.

ABVD (Adriamycin, bleomycin, vinblastine, dacarbazine) with or without radiation has been the standard treatment for limited-stage Hodgkin lymphoma (HL) but carries risks of bleomycin lung injury and radiation toxicity. Brentuximab vedotin (BV) is approved with AVD for stage III-IV HL, but carries increased risks of peripheral neuropathy (PN) and neutropenic fever, likely due to overlapping toxicity between BV and vinblastine. We therefore evaluated BV in combination with AD for 4 or 6 cycles based on interim positron emission tomography response. Thirty-four patients with nonbulky stage I-II HL were enrolled. Risk was early favorable in 53% and unfavorable in 47%. The overall and complete response rates (CRRs) were 100% and 97%, respectively, with a 5-year progression-free survival (PFS) of 91%. No differences in outcome were observed based on stage (I vs II) or risk status (early favorable vs unfavorable). The most common adverse events were nausea (85%), peripheral sensory neuropathy (59%), and fatigue (56%). There were no cases of grade-4 neutropenia or neutropenic fever, and no patient received granulocyte-colony stimulating factor. Most cases of PN were grade 1, and no patient experienced grade ≥3 PN. BV-AD produced a high CRR and durable PFS with most patients requiring 4 cycles of therapy. Compared with BV-AVD, the toxicity profile appeared improved, with predominantly grade 1 reversible PN and no case of grade 4 neutropenia or neutropenic fever. This regimen warrants further study in HL and may serve as a backbone for the addition of novel agents. This trial is registered on clinicaltrials.gov (NCT02505269)., (© 2023 by The American Society of Hematology. Licensed under Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-NoDerivatives 4.0 International (CC BY-NC-ND 4.0), permitting only noncommercial, nonderivative use with attribution. All other rights reserved.)

Background: In adults with advanced-stage Hodgkin's lymphoma, the CD30-directed antibody-drug conjugate brentuximab vedotin combined with multiagent chemotherapy has been shown to have greater efficacy, but also more toxic effects, than chemotherapy alone. The efficacy of this targeted therapy approach in children and adolescents with Hodgkin's lymphoma is unclear., Methods: We conducted an open-label, multicenter, randomized, phase 3 trial involving patients 2 to 21 years of age with previously untreated Hodgkin's lymphoma of stage IIB with bulk tumor or stage IIIB, IVA, or IVB. Patients were assigned to receive five 21-day cycles of brentuximab vedotin with doxorubicin, vincristine, etoposide, prednisone, and cyclophosphamide (brentuximab vedotin group) or the standard pediatric regimen of doxorubicin, bleomycin, vincristine, etoposide, prednisone, and cyclophosphamide (standard-care group). Slow-responding lesions, defined by a score of 4 or 5 (on a 5-point scale, with scores of 1 to 3 indicating rapid-responding lesions), were identified on centrally reviewed positron-emission tomography-computed tomography after two cycles. Involved-site radiation therapy was administered after the fifth cycle of therapy to slow-responding lesions and to large mediastinal adenopathy that was present at diagnosis. The primary end point was event-free survival, defined as the time until disease progression occurred, relapse occurred, a second malignant neoplasm developed, or the patient died. Safety and overall survival were assessed., Results: Of 600 patients who were enrolled across 153 institutions, 587 were eligible. At a median follow-up of 42.1 months (range, 0.1 to 80.9), the 3-year event-free survival was 92.1% (95% confidence interval [CI], 88.4 to 94.7) in the brentuximab vedotin group, as compared with 82.5% (95% CI, 77.4 to 86.5) in the standard-care group (hazard ratio for event or death, 0.41; 95% CI, 0.25 to 0.67; P<0.001). The percentage of patients who received involved-site radiation therapy did not differ substantially between the brentuximab vedotin group and the standard-care group (53.4% and 56.8%, respectively). Toxic effects were similar in the two groups. Overall survival at 3 years was 99.3% (95% CI, 97.3 to 99.8) in the brentuximab vedotin group and 98.5% (95% CI, 96.0 to 99.4) in the standard-care group., Conclusions: The addition of brentuximab vedotin to standard chemotherapy resulted in superior efficacy, with a 59% lower risk of an event or death, and no increase in the incidence of toxic effects at 3 years. (Funded by the National Institutes of Health and others; AHOD1331 ClinicalTrials.gov number, NCT02166463.)., (Copyright © 2022 Massachusetts Medical Society.)

Background: Five-year follow-up in a trial involving patients with previously untreated stage III or IV classic Hodgkin's lymphoma showed long-term progression-free survival benefits with first-line therapy with brentuximab vedotin, a CD30-directed antibody-drug conjugate, plus doxorubicin, vinblastine, and dacarbazine (A+AVD), as compared with doxorubicin, bleomycin, vinblastine, and dacarbazine (ABVD). A planned interim analysis indicated a potential benefit with regard to overall survival; data from a median of 6 years of follow-up are now available., Methods: We randomly assigned patients in a 1:1 ratio to receive up to six cycles of A+AVD or ABVD. The primary end point, modified progression-free survival, has been reported previously. The key secondary end point was overall survival in the intention-to-treat population. Safety was also assessed., Results: A total of 664 patients were assigned to receive A+AVD and 670 to receive ABVD. At a median follow-up of 73.0 months, 39 patients in the A+AVD group and 64 in the ABVD group had died (hazard ratio, 0.59; 95% confidence interval [CI], 0.40 to 0.88; P = 0.009). The 6-year overall survival estimates were 93.9% (95% CI, 91.6 to 95.5) in the A+AVD group and 89.4% (95% CI, 86.6 to 91.7) in the ABVD group. Progression-free survival was longer with A+AVD than with ABVD (hazard ratio for disease progression or death, 0.68; 95% CI, 0.53 to 0.86). Fewer patients in the A+AVD group than in the ABVD group received subsequent therapy, including transplantation, and fewer second cancers were reported with A+AVD (in 23 vs. 32 patients). Primary prophylaxis with granulocyte colony-stimulating factor was recommended after an increased incidence of febrile neutropenia was observed with A+AVD. More patients had peripheral neuropathy with A+AVD than with ABVD, but most patients in the two groups had resolution or amelioration of the event by the last follow-up., Conclusions: Patients who received A+AVD for the treatment of stage III or IV Hodgkin's lymphoma had a survival advantage over those who received ABVD. (Funded by Takeda Development Center Americas and Seagen; ECHELON-1 ClinicalTrials.gov number, NCT01712490; EudraCT number, 2011-005450-60.)., (Copyright © 2022 Massachusetts Medical Society.)

Positron emission tomography (PET)-adapted chemotherapy and radiotherapy approaches are currently used for the initial treatment of early-stage Hodgkin lymphoma (HL) with progression-free survival and overall survival exceeding 85% and 95%, respectively. However, despite general agreement on the prognostic value of interim PET in HL, frontline treatment approaches vary among institutions with respect to how pretreatment clinical risk factors determine treatment selection, the definition of PET negativity, which chemotherapy regimen to initiate and how many cycles to administer, and when to incorporate radiation. Furthermore, as recent trials have confirmed improved efficacy and manageable toxicity when brentuximab and checkpoint inhibitors are combined with frontline regimens such as doxorubicin, vinblastine, and dacarbazine in advanced-stage HL, these agents are now under evaluation as frontline therapy in early-stage HL. A number of issues will affect the use of these agents in early-stage HL, including the costs, early and late toxicities with these agents, patient population (favorable or unfavorable risk groups), how to incorporate them (concurrently or sequentially), and whether they can ultimately replace cytotoxic therapy with similar efficacy and fewer late effects. Future treatment paradigms for early-stage HL may change significantly once randomized studies are completed incorporating these agents into frontline therapy. Ideally, frontline use of brentuximab and checkpoint inhibitors in early-stage HL will result in improved outcomes compared with current PET-adapted approaches with decreased risks of late toxicities that continue to afflict long-term survivors of HL., (Copyright © 2021 by The American Society of Hematology.)

Background: Relapsed/refractory (R/R) classical HL (cHL) and systemic anaplastic large-cell lymphoma (sALCL) treatment options are limited in China. There is a need for new therapies., Research Design and Methods: This single-arm, open-label, multicenter, Phase II study assessed efficacy, safety, and pharmacokinetics of single-agent brentuximab vedotin in Chinese patients with R/R cHL or sALCL. Patients received brentuximab vedotin 1.8 mg/kg by intravenous infusion on Day 1 of 3-week cycles (maximum 16 cycles)., Results: Patients ( N = 39) received a median of 10 cycles (range: 2-16) of brentuximab vedotin. The objective response rate was 69% (95% CI: 52-83%), with 27 patients achieving objective responses (complete response: n = 11 [28%]; partial response: n = 16 [41%]). Median duration of response, progression-free survival and overall survival were 12.1 months, 13.5 months (95% CI: 6.8 months-not estimable) and not reached after a median follow-up of 16.6 months. Brentuximab vedotin was well tolerated with no on-study deaths. AEs were generally manageable and reversible. No new safety signals were identified. Pharmacokinetics were consistent with those previously described in Western populations., Conclusion: Brentuximab vedotin had a positive benefit-risk profile for Chinese patients with R/R cHL or sALCL, confirming it as a potential treatment option., Clinical Trial Registration: www.clinicaltrials.gov identifier is NCT02939014.

Purpose: To improve curability and limit long-term adverse effects for newly diagnosed early-stage (ES), unfavorable-risk Hodgkin lymphoma., Methods: In this multicenter study with four sequential cohorts, patients received four cycles of brentuximab vedotin (BV) and doxorubicin, vinblastine, and dacarbazine (AVD). If positron emission tomography (PET)-4-negative, patients received 30-Gy involved-site radiotherapy in cohort 1, 20-Gy involved-site radiotherapy in cohort 2, 30-Gy consolidation-volume radiotherapy in cohort 3, and no radiotherapy in cohort 4. Eligible patients had ES, unfavorable-risk disease. Bulk disease defined by Memorial Sloan Kettering criteria (> 7 cm in maximal transverse or coronal diameter on computed tomography) was not required for cohorts 1 and 2 but was for cohorts 3 and 4. The primary end point was to evaluate safety for cohort 1 and to evaluate complete response rate by PET for cohorts 2-4., Results: Of the 117 patients enrolled, 116 completed chemotherapy, with the median age of 32 years: 50% men, 98% stage II, 86% Memorial Sloan Kettering-defined disease bulk, 27% traditional bulk (> 10 cm), 52% elevated erythrocyte sedimentation rate, 21% extranodal involvement, and 56% > 2 involved lymph node sites. The complete response rate in cohorts 1-4 was 93%, 100%, 93%, and 97%, respectively. With median follow-up of 3.8 years (5.9, 4.5, 2.5, and 2.2 years for cohorts 1-4), the overall 2-year progression-free and overall survival were 94% and 99%, respectively. In cohorts 1-4, the 2-year progression-free survival was 93%, 97%, 90%, and 97%, respectively. Adverse events included neutropenia (44%), febrile neutropenia (8%), and peripheral neuropathy (54%), which was largely reversible., Conclusion: BV + AVD × four cycles is a highly active and well-tolerated treatment program for ES, unfavorable-risk Hodgkin lymphoma, including bulky disease. The efficacy of BV + AVD supports the safe reduction or elimination of consolidative radiation among PET-4-negative patients., Competing Interests: Anita KumarStock and Other Ownership Interests: BridgebioConsulting or Advisory Role: Celgene, Kite, a Gilead company, AstraZenecaResearch Funding: AbbVie/Genentech, Adaptive Biotechnologies, Celgene, Seattle Genetics, AstraZeneca, Pharmacyclics Carla CasuloHonoraria: Gilead SciencesResearch Funding: Celgene, Verastem, Gilead SciencesTravel, Accommodations, Expenses: Gilead Sciences, Roche Ranjana H. AdvaniConsulting or Advisory Role: Genentech/Roche, Seattle Genetics, Takeda, Portola Pharmaceuticals, Celgene, Sanofi, Kura Oncology, Merck, Karyopharm Therapeutics, ADC Therapeutics, Daiichi Sankyo, Bristol Myers Squibb/Celgene, Epizyme, IncyteResearch Funding: Millennium, Seattle Genetics, Genentech/Roche, Pharmacyclics, Janssen, Merck, Kura Oncology, Regeneron, Forty Seven, Cyteir Elizabeth BuddeHonoraria: AstraZenecaConsulting or Advisory Role: Roche/Genentech, Kite/Gilead, NovartisSpeakers' Bureau: Kite, a Gilead company, AstraZenecaResearch Funding: Merck, Amgen, MustangBio, AstraZenecaPatents, Royalties, Other Intellectual Property: CCR4 CAR T cells for treatment of patients with CCR4 positive cancer, CD33CAR for treatment of patients with CD33+ acute myeloid leukemiaTravel, Accommodations, Expenses: Roche/Genentech, Kite/Gilead, AstraZeneca Paul M. BarrConsulting or Advisory Role: Pharmacyclics, AbbVie, Seattle Genetics, Genentech, Novartis, Infinity Pharmaceuticals, Janssen, Merck, TG Therapeutics, MorphoSys, AstraZeneca, BeiGene, MEI Pharma, Bristol Myers Squibb/Celgene, BayerResearch Funding: Pharmacyclics, AstraZeneca Connie L. BatleviStock and Other Ownership Interests: Moderna Therapeutics, Novavax, Pfizer, Bristol Myers Squibb, Regeneron, ViatrisHonoraria: DAVAOncologyConsulting or Advisory Role: Lifesci Capital, GLG, Juno Therapeutics, Celgene, Seattle Genetics, Kite, a Gilead company, TG Therapeutics, Karyopharm TherapeuticsResearch Funding: Janssen Biotech, Novartis, Epizyme, Xynomic Pharma, Bayer, Roche, AutolusOpen Payments Link: https://openpaymentsdata.cms.gov/physician/2778694 Philip CaronStock and Other Ownership Interests: AstraZeneca, Bristol Myers Squibb, GlaxoSmithKline, Johnson & Johnson/Janssen, Novartis, Pfizer, Teva Louis S. ConstineHonoraria: UpToDate, Springer, Lippincott Savita V. DandapaniResearch Funding: Bayer Pamela DrullinskyResearch Funding: Novartis Jonathan W. FriedbergConsulting or Advisory Role: Astellas Pharma, NovartisResearch Funding: Seattle GeneticsPatents, Royalties, Other Intellectual Property: Patent on bone marrow microenvironment signals Paul A. HamlinConsulting or Advisory Role: Juno Therapeutics, Karyopharm Therapeutics, Celgene, Sandoz, AstraZeneca/MerckResearch Funding: Spectrum Pharmaceuticals, Seattle Genetics, Janssen, Portola Pharmaceuticals, GlaxoSmithKline, Molecular Templates, Incyte Richard T. HoppeStock and Other Ownership Interests: Johnson & Johnson, Pfizer Steven M. HorwitzConsulting or Advisory Role: Celgene, Millennium, Kyowa Hakko Kirin, Seattle Genetics, ADC Therapeutics, Portola Pharmaceuticals, Verastem, Takeda, Astex Pharmaceuticals, Kura Oncology, Acrotech Biopharma, C4 Therapeutics, Janssen Oncology, Trillium Therapeutics, Vividion Therapeutics, Myeloid Therapeutics, Ono PharmaceuticalResearch Funding: Celgene, Seattle Genetics, Takeda, Kyowa Hakko Kirin, Aileron Therapeutics, ADC Therapeutics, Verastem, Forty Seven, Trillium Therapeutics, Daiichi Sankyo, Affimed Therapeutics, Corvus Pharmaceuticals Niloufer KhanResearch Funding: Seattle Genetics Matthew J. MatasarStock and Other Ownership Interests: MerckHonoraria: Genentech, Roche, GlaxoSmithKline, Bayer, Pharmacyclics, Janssen, Seattle Genetics, Takeda, IGM Biosciences, ImmunovaccineConsulting or Advisory Role: Genentech, Bayer, Merck, Juno Therapeutics, Roche, Teva, Rocket Medical, Seattle Genetics, Daiichi Sankyo, TakedaResearch Funding: Genentech, Roche, GlaxoSmithKline, Bayer, Pharmacyclics, Janssen, Rocket Medical, Seattle Genetics, Immunovaccine, IGM BiosciencesTravel, Accommodations, Expenses: Genentech, Roche, Seattle Genetics, Bayer Alison J. MoskowitzHonoraria: Seattle GeneticsConsulting or Advisory Role: Seattle Genetics, Takeda, Imbrium Therapeutics, Merck, Janpix, Kyowa Kirin International, miRagen, ADC Therapeutics, Bristol Myers SquibbResearch Funding: Incyte, Seattle Genetics, Merck, Bristol Myers Squibb, miRagen, ADC Therapeutics Ariela NoyConsulting or Advisory Role: MorphoSys, Janssen Biotech, Prime OncologyResearch Funding: Pharmacyclics, Rafael PharmaceuticalsTravel, Accommodations, Expenses: Pharmacyclics, Janssen Oncology Maria Lia PalombaStock and Other Ownership Interests: Seres TherapeuticsHonoraria: Merck, Celgene, Pharmacyclics, Flagship Biosciences, Novartis, Evelo Therapeutics, Jazz Pharmaceuticals, Therakos, Amgen, Seres TherapeuticsConsulting or Advisory Role: Merck, Celgene, Flagship Biosciences, Novartis, Evelo Therapeutics, Jazz Pharmaceuticals, Therakos, Amgen, Seres Therapeutics, Kite, Gilead Company, NovartisResearch Funding: Seres TherapeuticsPatents, Royalties, Other Intellectual Property: Intellectual Property Rights, Juno intellectual property rights David J. StrausConsulting or Advisory Role: Takeda, Seattle Genetics Anas YounesEmployment: AstraZenecaStock and Other Ownership Interests: AstraZenecaHonoraria: Merck, Roche, Takeda, Janssen, AbbVie, Curis, EpizymeConsulting or Advisory Role: Bio-Path Holdings Inc, Xynomic Pharma, Epizyme, Roche, Celgene, HCMResearch Funding: Janssen, Curis, Roche, Genentech, Merck, Bristol Myers Squibb, SyndaxOther Relationship: AstraZeneca Andrew D. ZelenetzHonoraria: NCCN, Clinical Care Options, Oncology Information Group, PER, PlexusConsulting or Advisory Role: Gilead Sciences, Amgen, Genentech/Roche, Celgene, AstraZeneca, DAVAOncology, MorphoSys, BeiGene, MEI Pharma, Vaniam Group, Verastem, Pharmacyclics, Karyopharm Therapeutics, Debiopharm Group, Seattle Genetics, Quant Health Ltd, Kite, Gilead Company, Curis, Coherus Biosciences, Juno/Celgene/Bristol Myers Squibb, Curio ScienceResearch Funding: Genentech/Roche, Gilead Sciences, MEI Pharma, BeiGene Craig H. MoskowitzConsulting or Advisory Role: Merck Sharp & Dohme, Molecular Templates, Takeda, AstraZeneca, IncyteResearch Funding: AstraZeneca, Merck Sharp & DohmeNo other potential conflicts of interest were reported.

Purpose: Brentuximab vedotin, an effective anti-CD30 antibody-drug conjugate approved for use in adults with classical Hodgkin lymphoma (HL), was introduced in this frontline trial to reduce prescribed radiation in children and adolescents with classical HL., Methods: Open-label, single-arm, multicenter trial for patients (age ≤ 18 years) with stage IIB, IIIB, or IV classical HL was conducted. Brentuximab vedotin replaced each vincristine in the OEPA/COPDac (vincristine, etoposide, prednisone, and doxorubicin/cyclophosphamide, vincristine, prednisone, and dacarbazine) regimen according to GPOH-HD2002 treatment group 3 (TG3); two cycles of AEPA and four cycles of CAPDac. Residual node radiotherapy (25.5 Gy) was given at the end of all chemotherapy only to nodal sites that did not achieve a complete response (CR) at the early response assessment (ERA) after two cycles of therapy. Primary objectives were to evaluate the safety and efficacy (complete remission at ERA) of this combination and the 3-year event-free (EFS) and overall survival (OS). The trials are registered at ClinicalTrials.gov (identifier: NCT01920932)., Results: Of the 77 patients enrolled in the study, 27 (35%) achieved complete remission at ERA and were spared radiation. Patients who were irradiated received radiation to individual residual nodal tissue. At a median follow-up of 3.4 years, the 3-year EFS was 97.4% (SE 2.3%) and the OS was 98.7% (SE 1.6%). One irradiated patient experienced disease progression at the end of therapy and now remains disease free more than 6 years following salvage therapy, and one unexpected death occurred. Only 4% of patients experienced grade 3 neuropathy., Conclusion: The integration of brentuximab vedotin in the frontline treatment of pediatric high-risk HL is highly tolerable, facilitated significant reduction in radiation exposure, and yielded excellent outcomes., Competing Interests: Monika L. MetzgerResearch Funding: Seattle Genetics Michael P. LinkConsulting or Advisory Role: Incyte, ADC Therapeutics, Lilly, Steba Biotech, Mesoblast, GlaxoSmithKline, SyndaxResearch Funding: Seattle Genetics, Janssen Oncology Jamie FlerlageResearch Funding: Seattle Genetics Matthew J. EhrhardtHonoraria: Optum Torunn I. YockConsulting or Advisory Role: Huron Consulting Services, LLCResearch Funding: MIM Software Sue C. KasteStock and Other Ownership Interests: GE Healthcare Barry ShulkinConsulting or Advisory Role: Navidea Melissa M. HudsonConsulting or Advisory Role: Oncology Research Information Exchange Network, Princess Máxima Center Matthew J. KrasinConsulting or Advisory Role: Debiopharm GroupNo other potential conflicts of interest were reported.

Background: PD-1 blockade via pembrolizumab monotherapy has shown antitumour activity and toxicity in patients with relapsed or refractory classical Hodgkin lymphoma. Here, we present interim analyses from the KEYNOTE-204 study evaluating pembrolizumab versus brentuximab vedotin for relapsed or refractory classical Hodgkin lymphoma., Methods: In this randomised, open-label, phase 3 study, patients aged 18 years or older with relapsed or refractory classical Hodgkin lymphoma with measurable disease and an Eastern Cooperative Oncology Group performance status of 0 or 1 who were ineligible for or had relapsed after autologous haematopoietic stem-cell transplantation (HSCT) were enrolled at 78 hospitals and cancer centres in 20 countries and territories. Patients were randomly assigned (1:1) with an interactive voice response system to pembrolizumab 200 mg intravenously every 3 weeks or brentuximab vedotin 1·8 mg/kg intravenously every 3 weeks. Randomisation was stratified by previous autologous HSCT and status after front-line therapy. Results from the second interim analysis are presented here, with a database cutoff of Jan 16, 2020. The dual primary endpoints assessed in the intention-to-treat population were progression-free survival as assessed by blinded independent central review, and overall survival (not analysed at this interim analysis). Safety was assessed in all patients who received at least one dose of the study drug. This study is registered with ClinicalTrials.gov, NCT02684292. Recruitment for this trial is closed., Findings: Between July 8, 2016, and July 13, 2018, 151 patients were randomly assigned to pembrolizumab and 153 to brentuximab vedotin. After a median time from randomisation to data cutoff of 25·7 months (IQR 23·4-33·0), median progression-free survival was 13·2 months (95% CI 10·9-19·4) for pembrolizumab versus 8·3 months (5·7-8·8) for brentuximab vedotin (hazard ratio 0·65 [95% CI 0·48-0·88]; p=0·0027). The most common grade 3-5 treatment-related adverse events were pneumonitis (six [4%] of 148 patients in the pembrolizumab group vs one [1%] of 152 patients in the brentuximab vedotin group), neutropenia (three [2%] vs 11 [7%]), decreased neutrophil count (one [1%] vs seven [5%]), and peripheral neuropathy (one [1%] vs five [3%]). Serious treatment-related adverse events occurred in 24 (16%) of 148 patients receiving pembrolizumab and 16 (11%) of 152 patients receiving brentuximab vedotin. One treatment-related death due to pneumonia occurred in the pembrolizumab group., Interpretation: Pembrolizumab showed statistically significant and clinically meaningful improvement in progression-free survival compared with brentuximab vedotin, with safety consistent with previous reports. These data support pembrolizumab as the preferred treatment option for patients with relapsed or refractory classical Hodgkin lymphoma who have relapsed post-autologous HSCT or are ineligible for autologous HSCT., Funding: Merck Sharp & Dohme Corp (a subsidiary of Merck & Co, Inc, Kenilworth, NJ, USA)., (Copyright © 2021 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.)

Standard treatment for classical Hodgkin lymphoma (cHL) is poorly tolerated in older patients and results disappointing. We assessed safety and efficacy of brentuximab vedotin (BV), in previously untreated patients with cHL unfit for standard treatment due to age, frailty or comorbidity. The primary outcome was complete metabolic response (CMR) by positron emission tomography/computed tomography after four BV cycles (PET4). The secondary outcomes included progression-free survival (PFS), overall survival (OS), and toxicity. In all, 35 patients with a median age of 77 years and median total Cumulative Illness Rating Scale for Geriatrics (CIRS-G) score of 6 were evaluable for toxicity and 31 for response. A median of four cycles were given (range one-16). In all, 14 patients required dose reduction due to toxicity and 11 patients stopped treatment due to adverse events (AEs). A total of 716 AEs were reported, of which 626 (88%) were Grade 1/2 and 27 (77%) patients had at least one AE Grade ≥3. At PET4, CMR was 25·8% [95% confidence interval (CI) 13·7-42.2%] and objective response rate 83·9% (95% CI 63·7-90·8%). Median PFS was 7·3 months (95% CI 5·2-9·0), and OS 19·5 months. Our results suggest that BV monotherapy is tolerable but suboptimal in the front-line therapy of elderly or comorbid patients with cHL. Combining BV with other agents may be more effective. Trial Registration: Clinicaltrials.gov identifier: NCT02567851., (© 2020 The Authors. British Journal of Haematology published by British Society for Haematology and John Wiley & Sons Ltd.)

Brentuximab vedotin (BV) was initially approved in Japan for the treatment of relapsed/refractory (R/R) CD30-positive Hodgkin lymphoma (HL) and systemic anaplastic large cell lymphoma (sALCL). As requested by the Japanese Ministry of Health, Labour and Welfare, we conducted a post-marketing surveillance (PMS) study to assess the safety of BV in Japanese patients with R/R HL or sALCL. PMS forms were collected from 284 patients (182 with HL, 101 with sALCL and one with another lymphoma) treated between April and September 2014. The median age was 62 (range 14-93) years and the median number of treatment cycles was 5.5 for HL and 4 for sALCL. Adverse drug reactions (ADRs) were reported in 74.3% of patients. The most commonly observed ADRs included peripheral sensory neuropathy (39.1%; grade ≥ 3, 6.3%), neutropenia (34.5%; grade ≥ 3, 22.2%) and lymphopenia (7.0%; grade ≥ 3, 5.3%). Ten patients had fatal ADRs including interstitial lung disease (n = 3). This study showed that BV has an acceptable safety profile in Japanese patients with R/R HL and R/R sALCL in the clinical practice setting. However, close monitoring rare, but potentially fatal, ADRs such as pulmonary toxicity may be warranted, especially in patients with prior or ongoing pulmonary disorders.

Introduction: Brentuximab vedotin is a monoclonal antibody drug conjugate used for the treatment of patients with Hodgkin lymphoma. Hypersensitivity reactions to brentuximab vedotin may include cutaneous, cardiovascular, respiratory, gastrointestinal and neurological signs and symptoms., Case Report: We present the case of a 23-year-old Mexican female with stage IV progressive classical nodular sclerosing Hodgkin lymphoma who received multiple previous chemotherapy regimens. Brentuximab vedotin at 1.8 mg/kg (180 mg total dose), for 21-day cycles was indicated. Within 5 min of infusion of the 5th cycle of brentuximab, she developed severe anaphylaxis (hives, angioedema, diaphoresis, tachycardia, dyspnea, hypoxemia and loss of consciousness), which was successfully controlled with epinephrine, steroids and antihistamines. Management and outcome: Intradermal skin test at a concentration of 0.1 mg/ml was positive. Due to the severity of the symptoms and the lack of access to alternative treatments, we performed a desensitization protocol. A total of 180 mg of brentuximab was given in three bag solutions in 12 steps, with an initial concentration dose of 1/100 of the total dose in a course of 5.56 h with no hypersensitivity reactions., Discussion: Severe anaphylaxis has been reported in 1.2% of patients receiving brentuximab vedotin. Patients who are treated by rapid drug desensitization with their first option therapy present a favorable survival rate with better cost-effectiveness in comparison to second-line treatment.

Background: Hodgkin lymphoma is potentially curable. However, 15-35% of older patients (ie, >60 years) have a lower response rate, worse survival outcomes, and greater toxicity than younger patients. Brentuximab vedotin and nivolumab exhibit activity in patients with relapsed or refractory Hodgkin lymphoma. We therefore aimed to evaluate the safety and efficacy of brentuximab vedotin and nivolumab in untreated older patients with Hodgkin lymphoma or in younger patients considered unsuitable for standard ABVD (ie, doxorubicin, bleomycin, vinblastine, and dacarbazine) therapy., Methods: We did a multicentre, single-arm, phase 2 trial at eight cancer centres in the USA. Previously untreated patients with classic Hodgkin lymphoma were eligible for study enrolment if they were 60 years or older, or younger than 60 years but considered unsuitable for standard chemotherapy because of a cardiac ejection fraction of less than 50%, pulmonary diffusion capacity of less than 80%, or a creatinine clearance of 30 mL/min or more but less than 60 mL/min, or those who refused chemotherapy. Patients were also required to have an Eastern Cooperative Oncology Group (ECOG) performance status of 0-2. Patients received brentuximab vedotin at 1·8 mg/kg (dose cap at 180 mg) and nivolumab at 3 mg/kg both intravenously every 21 days for 8 cycles. The primary endpoint was the overall response, defined as a partial metabolic response or complete metabolic response at the end of 8 cycles of treatment. A per protocol analysis was done including all patients who received treatment in the activity and safety analyses. This study is registered with ClinicalTrials.gov, number NCT02758717., Findings: Between May 13, 2016, and Jan 30, 2019, the study accrued 46 patients. The median age was 71·5 years (IQR 64-77), with two (4%) of 46 patients younger than 60 years. Median follow-up was 21·2 months (IQR 15·6-29·9), and 35 (76%) of 46 patients completed all 8 cycles of therapy. At the interim analysis on Oct 11, 2019, the first 25 evaluable patients had an overall response rate of 64% ([95% CI 43-82] 16 of 25 patients; 13 [52%] had a complete metabolic response and three [12%] had a partial metabolic response). The trial was closed to accrual on Oct 14, 2019, after the interim analysis failed to meet the predefined criteria. In all 46 evaluable patients, 22 (48%) patients achieved a complete metabolic response and six (13%) achieved a partial metabolic response (overall response rate 61% [95% CI 45-75]). 14 (30%) of 46 patients had 16 dose adjustments, primarily due to neurotoxicity. 22 (48%) of 46 patients had peripheral neuropathy (five [11%] patients had grade 3 peripheral neuropathy). Grade 4 adverse events included increased aminotranferases (one [2%] of 46), increased lipase or amylase (two [4%]), and pancreatitis (one [2%]). One (2%) patient died from cardiac arrest, possibly treatment related., Interpretation: Although the trial did not meet the prespecified activity criteria, brentuximab vedotin plus nivolumab is active in older patients with previously untreated Hodgkin lymphoma with comorbidities. The regimen was also well tolerated in the majority of patients in this older population. Future trials should be based on optimising the dose and schedule, perhaps combined with other targeted agents that might permit chemotherapy-free strategies in older patients with Hodgkin lymphoma., Funding: Seattle Genetics and Bristol Myers Squibb., (Copyright © 2020 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.)

Brentuximab vedotin (BV), a CD30-directed antibody-drug conjugate, is US FDA approved for treatment of classic Hodgkin lymphoma (cHL) after progression or relapse of at least two prior lines of chemotherapy or autologous stem cell transplantation, as consolidation therapy after autologous stem cell transplantation for high-risk patients and as a front-line therapy for previously untreated, advanced-stage cHL in combination with chemotherapy. BV is a well-tolerated treatment in previously heavily pretreated relapsed/refractory cHL and in treatment-naive patients. BV use, in combination with other antineoplastic agents for cHL, is under investigation in multiple prospective clinical trials.

Up to 30% of patients with classical Hodgkin lymphoma (cHL) are not responsive to frontline therapy or relapse after primary treatment. In these cases, autologous hematopoietic stem cell transplantation (AHSCT) is the standard of care. The combination of brentuximab vedotin and bendamustine (BV + B) is an effective salvage regimen in this challenging subpopulation. This nationwide multicenter study investigated the real-world efficacy and safety of the BV + B regimen as a bridge to AHSCT in patients with primary refractory or relapsed cHL. A total of 41 cHL patients underwent AHSCT after receiving at least 1 cycle of BV + B (with brentuximab vedotin given at 1.8 mg/kg on day 1 and bendamustine at 90 mg/m 2 on days 1-2 every 4 weeks). After a median of 3 (1-6) cycles of BV + B, the objective response rate was 78%, with 29 (70.7%) patients achieving complete remission. Twelve (29.3%) patients relapsed after AHSCT, 2 (4.9%) of them died, while 2 (4.9%) patients are lost to follow-up. After a median of 17 months of follow-up, the estimated 2-year overall- and progression-free survival after AHSCT was 93 and 62%, respectively. Features of advanced disease at recurrence (p = 0.038) and the presence of stage IV cHL at relapse (p = 0.024) are strong predictor markers of unfavorable outcomes. Twenty-four (58.5%) patients experienced adverse events of any grade, while no grade IV toxicities were reported. BV + B is an effective salvage option with a manageable toxicity profile in cHL. The real-world safety and efficacy of this combination are similar to the observations made on the study population.

Background: Recognising that the immune suppressive microenvironment promotes tumour growth in Hodgkin lymphoma, we hypothesised that activating immunity might augment the activity of targeted chemotherapy. We evaluated the safety and activity of combinations of brentuximab vedotin with nivolumab or ipilimumab, or both in patients with relapsed or refractory Hodgkin lymphoma., Methods: In this multicentre, open-label, phase 1/2 trial, patients with relapsed or refractory Hodgkin lymphoma aged 18 years or older who had relapsed after at least one line of therapy, with an Eastern Cooperative Oncology Group performance status of 2 or lower, and adequate organ and marrow function, with no pulmonary dysfunction were eligible for inclusion. Phase 1 primary objectives were to determine the maximum tolerated dose and dose limiting toxicities of brentuximab vedotin combined with ipilimumab (ipilimumab group), nivolumab (nivolumab group), or both (triplet therapy group) using a 3 + 3 dose escalation design with expansion cohorts. During the dose escalation phase, patients were enrolled sequentially into one of six cohorts: in the ipilimumab group fixed brentuximab vedotin 1·8 mg/kg with ipilimumab 1 mg/kg (cohort A) or 3 mg/kg (cohort B); in the nivolumab group fixed nivolumab 3 mg/kg with brentuximab vedotin 1·2 mg/kg (cohort D) or 1·8 mg/kg (cohort E); and in the triplet therapy group fixed nivolumab 3 mg/kg and ipilimumab 1 mg/kg with brentuximab vedotin 1·2 mg/kg (cohort G) or 1·8 mg/kg (cohort H). Additional patients were enrolled in the expansion phase at the same doses of cohorts B, E, and H. All drugs were given intravenously; brentuximab vedotin and nivolumab were given every 3 weeks, ipilimumab was given every 6 weeks in the ipilimumab group and every 12 weeks in the triplet therapy group. All eligible and treated patients were included in the analysis. This phase 1/2 study is registered with ClinicalTrials.gov, NCT01896999. The phase 2, randomised portion of the trial is still enrolling., Findings: Between March 7, 2014, and Dec 28, 2017, 64 patients were enrolled; two patients in the ipilimumab group and one patient in the nivolumab group were excluded due to ineligibility after enrolment and 61 were evaluable. A total of six dose limiting toxicities were reported in four patients, and the doses used in cohorts B, E, and H were established as maximum tolerated doses and patients were subsequently enrolled onto expansion cohorts (C, F, and I) with these schedules. There were ten (43%) grade 3-4 treatment related adverse events in the ipilimumab group, three (16%) in the nivolumab group, and 11 (50%) in the triplet therapy group including: eight (13%) of 64 patients reporting rash, and colitis, gastritis, pancreatitis and arthritis, and diabetic ketoacidosis each occurring in one (2%) patient. There were two (3%) treatment related deaths, one in the nivolumab group and one in the triplet therapy group. The overall response rate was 76% (95% CI 53-92) in the ipilimumab group, 89% (65-99) in the nivolumab group, and 82% (60-95) in the triplet therapy group, and the complete response rate was 57% (95% CI 34-78%) in the ipilimumab group, 61% (36-83%) in the nivolumab group, and 73% (50-89%) in the triplet therapy group. With a median follow-up of 2·6 years (IQR 1·8-2·9) in the ipilimumab group, 2·4 years (2·2-2·6) in the nivolumab group, and 1·7 years (1·6-1·9) in the triplet therapy group, median progression-free survival is 1·2 years (95% CI 1·7-not reached) in the ipilimumab group, but was not reached in the other two treatment groups. Median overall survival has not been reached in any of the groups., Interpretation: There are clear differences in activity and toxicity of the three combination regimens. The tolerability and preliminary activity for the two most active regimens, brentuximab vedotin with nivolumab and the triplet therapy, are being compared in a randomised phase 2 trial (NCT01896999)., Funding: Eastern Cooperative Oncology Group-American College of Radiology Imaging Network and the National Cancer Institute of the National Institutes of Health., (Copyright © 2020 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.)

Data on the treatment of pediatric patients with brentuximab vedotin are limited. The aims of the present study were to assess the safety and tolerability of brentuximab vedotin in Japanese children with relapsed or refractory Hodgkin's lymphoma (HL) or systemic anaplastic large-cell lymphoma (sALCL). Pediatric patients, aged 2-17 years, with relapsed or refractory HL or sALCL were recruited. Brentuximab vedotin were administered at 1.8 mg/kg via intravenous infusion once every 3 weeks. Primary endpoints were dose-limiting toxicity and safety. Between September 2016, and March 2018, six patients (median age 11.5, range 5-14 years), four with relapsed or refractory HL and two with relapsed or refractory sALCL were enrolled. Dose limiting toxicity was not observed in any of the six patients. Although three of six patients (50%) experienced at least one grade ≥ 3 adverse event, no patient experienced a serious adverse event. The pharmacokinetic profile of brentuximab vedotin in pediatric patients was comparable to that reported in adults. The proportion of patients who achieved overall response was 60% (95% confidence interval 14.7-94.7). Brentuximab vedotin at 1.8 mg/kg once every 3 weeks was considered tolerable in children with relapsed or refractory HL or sALCL.

The phase 3 ECHELON-1 study demonstrated that brentuximab vedotin (A) with doxorubicin, vinblastine, and dacarbazine (AVD; A+AVD) exhibited superior modified progression-free survival (PFS) vs doxorubicin, bleomycin, vinblastine, and dacarbazine (ABVD) for frontline treatment of patients with stage III/IV classical Hodgkin lymphoma (cHL). Maturing positron emission tomography (PET)-adapted trial data highlight potential limitations of PET-adapted approaches, including toxicities with dose intensification and higher-than-expected relapse rates in PET scan after cycle 2 (PET2)-negative (PET2-) patients. We present an update of the ECHELON-1 study, including an exploratory analysis of 3-year PFS per investigator. A total of 1334 patients with stage III or IV cHL were randomized 1:1 to receive 6 cycles of A+AVD (n = 664) or ABVD (n = 670). Interim PET2 was required. At median follow-up of 37 months, 3-year PFS rates were 83.1% with A+AVD and 76.0% with ABVD; 3-year PFS rates in PET2- patients aged <60 years were 87.2% vs 81.0%, respectively. A beneficial trend in PET2+ patients aged <60 years on A+AVD was also observed, with a 3-year PFS rate of 69.2% vs 54.7% with ABVD. The benefit of A+AVD in the intent-to-treat population appeared independent of disease stage and prognostic risk factors. Upon continued follow-up, 78% of patients with peripheral neuropathy on A+AVD had either complete resolution or improvement compared with 83% on ABVD. These data highlight that A+AVD provides a durable efficacy benefit compared with ABVD for frontline stage III/IV cHL, consistent across key subgroups regardless of patient status at PET2, without need for treatment intensification or bleomycin exposure. This trial was registered at www.clinicaltrials.gov as #NCT01712490 (EudraCT no. 2011-005450-60)., (© 2020 by The American Society of Hematology.)

Classical Hodgkin lymphoma (cHL) is considered a curable disease; however, approximately one-third of responders experience disease relapse following first-line therapy. Several studies have shown the efficacy of brentuximab vedotin (BV) in patients with relapsed/refractory HL. We present a retrospective analysis of 58 patients with relapsed/refractory HL treated with BV in a named patient program from 11 centers. The median follow-up duration was 20 (range, 4-84) months. The best overall response rate was 64% (complete response [CR], 31%; partial response [PR], 33%). The 5-year progression-free survival (PFS) and overall survival (OS) rates were 12% (95% confidence interval [CI], 0.05-0.22) and 26% (95% CI, 0.16-0.38), respectively. Among patients who achieved CR, the estimated 5-year PFS and OS rates were 32% (95% CI, 0.13-0.54) and 60% (95% CI, 0.33-0.78), respectively. A total of 26 patients underwent subsequent stem cell transplantation. The 5-year PFS and OS rates for 10 patients who had consolidative stem cell transplantation were 28% and 30%, respectively. Twenty-seven patients required further therapy following BV. At the time of the analysis, 12 patients (21%) were alive. Five patients (9%) had long-term remission after achieving CR with BV monotherapy, with a median PFS of 76 months. Three of them (5%) did not receive any other treatment following BV and their median PFS was 75 months. Our long-term results showed that a small subset of patients with relapsed/refractory cHL may benefit from and even be cured with BV monotherapy.

Patients with HIV-associated lymphocyte-depleted Hodgkin lymphoma (HIV-HL) often present with advanced, extranodal disease and aggressive clinical features, limiting definitive therapeutic intervention. Here we report two patients with HIV-HL who presented with multi-organ dysfunction as an initial manifestation of their malignancy. Both were initially treated with brentuximab vedotin (BV), which led only to a temporary partial response, highlighting the challenges of treatment. One patient was eventually started on nivolumab and responded very well to the immune checkpoint inhibitor. To our knowledge, this is the first case to describe successful use of nivolumab in a patient with relapsed lymphocyte-depleted HIV-HL. Prompt recognition of multi-organ dysfunction as an initial presentation of lymphocyte-depleted HIV-HL is essential to ensure rapid provision of therapy. While use of BV remains a reasonable option, earlier introduction of immunotherapy in the treatment of HL may provide an additional option in critically ill patients with lymphocyte-depleted HIV-HL., (© 2019 S. Karger AG, Basel.)

Hodgkin lymphoma (HL) is a highly curable hematologic malignancy. Relapsed/refractory (R/R) HL is an important clinical challenge, despite advances in treatment. Brentuximab vedotin (BV) is highly effective in R/R HL in the western world. However, there are no real-world data on the use of BV in the Asian population. Our study aimed to evaluate the efficacy and safety of BV as salvage therapy in R/R HL patients in Taiwan. We recruited 20 R/R HL patients who received BV at National Taiwan University Hospital. BV was administered at 1.8 mg/kg once every 3 weeks. The median number of systemic treatment received before BV was three. The overall response rate was 73.7% with a complete remission rate of 21.1% in R/R HL. Overall survival was not reached and progression-free survival was 6.8 months. BV could strengthen disease control before transplantation and improve post-transplant outcomes, even among those heavily pretreated patients, without significant overlapping toxicities with prior therapies. Our data suggest that BV is well tolerated and effective in the treatment of Asian patients with R/R HL. BV may offer long-term disease control in selected patients., (Copyright © 2019. Published by Elsevier B.V.)

ECHELON-1 study is a randomized open-labeled controlled trial investigating whether addition of brentuximab vedotin to chemotherapy offers benefit over the standard chemotherapy regimen in advanced Hodgkin lymphoma. After a median follow-up of 24.6 months, it has met its primary endpoint the reduction of modified progression-free survival being 23 percent. However, the beneficial effects have not been seen across all subgroups leading to further questions. The main aim of this review is to tackle these questions to provide the reader with in-depth insight of pros and cons of this novel, promising but ultimately controversial regimen., (© 2019 John Wiley & Sons A/S. Published by John Wiley & Sons Ltd.)

A 67-year-old man with an 11-year history of composite lymphoma was admitted with fevers in the context of neutropenia and acute liver injury, 4 months after the commencement of single-agent brentuximab vedotin. Fevers resolved with intravenous antibiotics, however, his liver function tests remained abnormal and he continued to be deeply jaundiced over the course of his 3-week illness. A liver screen failed to indicate a cause for his liver function test abnormalities and two separate liver biopsies were suggestive of drug-induced liver injury. There was no evidence on biopsy of lymphoma. After consultation with two hepatologists, trials of steroids and ursodeoxycholic acid were unsuccessful. Twenty-five days into admission, he became septic with a normal peripheral blood count and deteriorated rapidly. After discussion with the family, he was deemed not to be for further escalation of care, and he died within several hours. This report summarizes the evidence in relation to hepatotoxicity of brentuximab vedotin.

Doxorubicin, bleomycin, vinblastine, and dacarbazine (ABVD) with or without radiation is standard therapy for limited-stage Hodgkin lymphoma (HL) but carries risks of bleomycin-induced lung injury and radiation toxicity. Brentuximab vedotin is highly active in relapsed HL and was recently approved with doxorubicin, vinblastine, and dacarbazine (AVD) for previously untreated stage III/IV HL. We evaluated brentuximab-AVD for nonbulky stage I/II HL in a multicenter phase 2 study. Patients received a lead-in cycle of brentuximab vedotin monotherapy on days 1 and 15, followed by an exploratory positron emission tomography/computed tomography scan. Patients then received brentuximab-AVD for 4 to 6 cycles based on interim positron emission tomography/computed tomography scanning after cycle 2. Thirty-four patients were enrolled with a median age of 36 years (range, 20-75 years). Risk was early favorable in 62% and unfavorable in 38%. The best complete response rate was 100%. At a median follow-up of 38 months, the progression-free survival and overall survival were 94% and 97%, respectively. The most common adverse events were peripheral sensory neuropathy (79%), neutropenia (76%), fatigue (74%), and nausea (71%). The most common grade 3/4 toxicities were neutropenia (62%), febrile neutropenia (35%), and peripheral sensory neuropathy (24%). One elderly patient died of neutropenic sepsis in the first brentuximab-AVD cycle. Brentuximab dose reductions were required in 38% of patients, most for peripheral neuropathy. In conclusion, brentuximab-AVD without bleomycin or radiation produced a high complete response rate, with most patients requiring only 4 total cycles of therapy. Because toxicity was higher than would be expected from AVD alone, this method may not be appropriate for early-stage patients with a highly favorable prognosis. This trial was registered at www.clinicaltrials.gov as #NCT01534078., (© 2019 by The American Society of Hematology.)

We evaluated the impact on progression-free survival (PFS) of achieving a deep metabolic response at 2-deoxy-2[ 18 F] fluoro-d-glucose positron emission tomography (FDG-PET) in patients with refractory or relapsed (R/R) classic Hodgkin lymphoma (cHL) following a new salvage regimen named Bv+Bs (brentuximab vedotin + bendamustine supercharge), from 2013 to 2017. In this real-life study, 20 consecutive patients (aged <60 years) with R/R cHL after failure of ≥1 salvage treatments received Bv+Bs regimen consisting of 3-days outpatient IV infusions of 1.8 mg/kg of Bv on day 1 of each 3-week cycle combined in sequence to bendamustine on days 2 and 3 of the treatment cycle at a fixed dose of 120 mg/m 2 per day, for a total of 4 courses. A robust primary prophylaxis approach, including premedication, antimicrobials, stimulating factors, and cytomegalovirus monitoring, was systematically performed. The 20 patients (all evaluable) underwent 4 courses of Bv+Bs with a median dose intensity of 100% for both Bv and Bs. Ten patients (50%) experienced grade ≥3 treatment-related adverse events, without requiring hospitalization. At post-Bv+Bs reevaluation, 80% of patients had deep metabolic responses with Deauville 5-point scale scores ≤2. Thereafter, 14 patients (70%) received autologous hematopoietic stem cell transplantation (HSCT; peripheral blood stem cells previously harvested in 12 cases), and 4 patients (10%) received allogeneic HSCT. At a median follow-up of 27 months from Bv+Bs regimen initiation, the 2-year PFS of the entire population was 93.7% (95% confidence interval, 62.7% to 99.6%). Our data suggest that Bv+Bs regimen-driven strategy may be a promising salvage option to improve long-term control of high-risk Hodgkin lymphoma., (© 2019 by The American Society of Hematology.)

Background: In this work, we assessed the efficacy and safety of brentuximab vedotin (BV) plus ESHAP (BRESHAP) as second-line therapy for Relapsed/Refractory Hodgkin lymphoma (RRHL) to improve the results before autologous stem-cell transplantation (ASCT)., Patients and Methods: This was a multicenter, open-label, phase I-II trial of patients with RRHL after first-line chemotherapy. Treatment had three 21-day cycles of etoposide, solumedrol, high-dose AraC, and cisplatin. BV was administered at three dose levels (0.9, 1.2, and 1.8 mg/kg) intravenous on day ‒1 to 3 + 3 cohorts of patients. Final BV dose was 1.8 mg/kg. Responding patients proceeded to ASCT, followed by three BV courses (1.8 mg/kg, every 21 days). Main end points for evaluation were maximum tolerable dose and overall and complete response (CR) before ASCT., Results: A total of 66 patients were recruited (median age 36 years; range 18-66): 40 were primary refractory, 16 early relapse and 10 late relapse. There were 39 severe adverse events were reported in 22 patients, most frequently fever (n = 25, 35% neutropenic), including 3 deaths. Grade 3-4 hematological toxicity presented in 28 cases: neutropenia (n = 21), thrombocytopenia (n = 14), and anemia (n = 7). Grade ≥3-4 extrahematological adverse events (≥5%) were non-neutropenic fever (n = 13) and hypomagnesaemia (n = 3). Sixty-four patients underwent stem-cell mobilization; all collected >2×10e6/kg CD34+ cells (median 5.75; range 2.12-33.4). Overall response before transplant was 91% (CI 84% to 98%), including 70% (CRs 95% CI 59% to 81%). 60 patients were transplanted with no failure engraftments. Post-transplant response was CR in 49 patients (82% CI 73% to 91%) and partial responses in six (10% CI 5% to 15%). After a mean follow-up of 27 months, the 30-month time to treatment to failure was 74% (95% CI 68% to 80%), progression-free survival 71% (95% CI 65% to 77%), and overall survival 91% (CI 84% to 98%)., Conclusion: BRESHAP looks a safe and effective pre-transplant induction regimen, does not jeopardize transplant and allows long-term remissions and survival., (© The Author(s) 2019. Published by Oxford University Press on behalf of the European Society for Medical Oncology. All rights reserved. For permissions, please email: journals.permissions@oup.com.)

Purpose: To evaluate safety and efficacy outcomes for subjects on the ECHELON-1 study treated in North America (NA)., Patients and Methods: ECHELON-1 is a global, open-label, randomized phase III study comparing doxorubicin, vinblastine, and dacarbazine in combination with brentuximab vedotin (A+AVD) versus ABVD (AVD + bleomycin) as first-line therapy in subjects with stage III or IV classical Hodgkin lymphoma (cHL; NCT01712490). Subjects were randomized 1:1 to receive A+AVD or ABVD intravenously on days 1 and 15 of each 28-day cycle for up to 6 cycles., Results: The NA subgroup consisted of 497 subjects in the A+AVD ( n = 250) and ABVD ( n = 247) arms. Similar to the primary analysis based on the intent-to-treat population, the primary endpoint [modified progression-free survival (PFS) per independent review] demonstrated an improvement among subjects who received A+AVD compared with ABVD (HR = 0.60; P = 0.012). For PFS, the risk of progression or death was also reduced (HR = 0.50; P = 0.002). Subsequent anticancer therapies were lower in the A+AVD arm. Grade 3 or 4 adverse events (AEs) were more common, but there were fewer study discontinuations due to AEs in the A+AVD arm as compared with ABVD. Noted differences between arms included higher rates of febrile neutropenia (20% vs. 9%) and peripheral neuropathy (80% vs. 56%), but lower rates of pulmonary toxicity (3% vs. 10%) in subjects treated with A+AVD versus ABVD., Conclusions: The efficacy benefit and manageable toxicity profile observed in the NA subgroup of ECHELON-1 support A+AVD as a frontline treatment option for patients with stage III or IV cHL., (©2019 American Association for Cancer Research.)