In a Chinese study reported in JAMA, Huang et al found that treatment with entecavir (guanosine analog reverse transcriptase inhibitor) reduced hepatitis B virus (HBV)-related hepatitis and HBV reactivation compared with lamivudine (cytidine analog reverse transcriptase inhibitor) in HBV-positive...
The U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) has granted Fast Track designation to Soligenix’s synthetic hypericin (SGX301) development program for the first-line treatment of cutaneous T-cell lymphoma. Fast Track designation is reserved for drugs that demonstrate the potential to address an...
Anti–PD-1 antibodies have been shown to be effective in solid tumors. There is evidence that the malignant Reed-Sternberg cells in Hodgkin lymphomas use the PD-1 pathway to evade immune detection, with alterations in chromosome 9p24.1 increasing levels of PD-L1 and PD-L2 and promoting...
In an analysis of the French phase III LNH 03-2B trial reported in the Journal of Clinical Oncology, Molina et al found that germinal center B-cell–like vs non–germinal center B-cell–like subclassification of diffuse large B-cell lymphoma according to the Hans algorithm was...
The promise of the programmed death receptor-1 (PD-1) inhibitors seen in solid tumors, especially melanoma, may hold true for at least one hematologic malignancy, according to studies presented at the 56th American Society of Hematology (ASH) Annual Meeting and Exposition. At a press briefing,...
In Hodgkin lymphoma patients at risk for disease progression following autologous stem cell transplant, early consolidation post-transplant with brentuximab vedotin (Adcetris) significantly improved progression-free survival compared with placebo in the phase III AETHERA trial. The findings were...
Patients with human immunodeficiency virus (HIV)-related relapsed/refractory lymphoma can safely undergo autologous hematopoietic cell transplant, according to results of a phase II multicenter trial. At many centers, patients with HIV-related lymphoma are currently excluded from this potentially...
In the phase II SMARTE-R-CHOP-14 trial of the German High-Grade Non-Hodgkin Lymphoma Study Group reported in the Journal of Clinical Oncology, Pfreundschuh et al found that extended rituximab (Rituxan) exposure in patients aged > 60 years with poor-prognosis diffuse large B-cell lymphoma was...
In a prospective Chinese study reported in the Journal of Clinical Oncology, Seto et al found a 2-year rate of hepatitis B virus (HBV) reactivation of 41.5% in hepatitis B surface antigen (HBsAg)-negative and anti–hepatitis B core antigen antibody (anti-HBc)–positive patients receiving...
In a report from the Childhood Cancer Survivor Study published in the Journal of Clinical Oncology, Jones and colleagues found that vigorous exercise reduces the risk of major cardiovascular events in adult survivors of childhood Hodgkin lymphoma. Study Details In the study, 1,187 survivors of...
As reported in the Journal of Clinical Oncology by Friedman and colleagues, the Children’s Oncology Group study AHOD0031 has shown that early response to dose-intensive chemotherapy can be used to tailor subsequent therapy in pediatric intermediate-risk Hodgkin lymphoma. Study Details In...
In the NCIC-CTG LY.12 study, a phase III international noninferiority trial reported in the Journal of Clinical Oncology, Crump and colleagues found that gemcitabine, dexamethasone, and cisplatin (GDP) was associated with a noninferior response rate and similar transplantation rate compared with...
The U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) has approved bortezomib (Velcade) injection for previously untreated patients with mantle cell lymphoma. This is the first treatment in the United States to be approved for use in previously untreated patients with mantle cell lymphoma. Bortezomib was...
In a pooled analysis reported in The Lancet Haematology, Trotman et al found that 18F-fluorodeoxyglucose (FDG) positron-emission tomography/low-dose computed tomography (PET-CT) provides improved prognostic information over conventional contrast-enhanced CT in assessment of response to first-line...
As the U.S. population continues to age, oncologists will be faced with a growing number of elderly patients with Hodgkin lymphoma, but there is currently no consensus on how to treat this population. Regimens used to treat younger patients have too much toxicity for most older patients, and thus...
Abdominal irradiation for childhood cancer has been associated with increased risk of diabetes. In a Dutch study reported in the Journal of Clinical Oncology, van Nimwegen and colleagues assessed the relationship between infradiaphragm radiotherapy and risk of diabetes in long-term survivors of...
In a study reported in the Journal of Clinical Oncology, Kochenderfer et al found that single infusions of autologous T cells expressing an anti-CD19 chimeric antigen receptor (CAR) produced responses in nearly all patients with chemotherapy-refractory CD19-positive B-cell malignancies, including...
Patients with stage I and II Hodgkin lymphoma who received consolidated radiation experienced improved 10-year survival rates, according to research presented at the American Society for Radiation Oncology (ASTRO) 56th Annual Meeting (Abstract CT-08). The 10-year survival rate for patients who...
Maintenance rituximab (Rituxan) has been shown to improve progression-free survival vs observation in low-tumor-burden follicular lymphoma. In the Eastern Cooperative Oncology Group (ECOG) E4402 Trial (RESORT), reported in the Journal of Clinical Oncology, Kahl et al found no significant difference ...
A phase II study reported in the Journal of Clinical Oncology by Nowakowski et al indicates that the addition of lenalidomide (Revlimid) to R-CHOP (rituximab [Rituxan] plus cyclophosphamide, doxorubicin, vincristine, and prednisone)—a regimen known as R2CHOP—overcomes the negative...
In a study reported in the Journal of Clinical Oncology, Bittenbring et al found that vitamin D deficiency was associated with poorer outcome in older patients receiving R-CHOP (rituximab [Rituxan] plus cyclophosphamide, doxorubicin, vincristine, and prednisone) for diffuse large B-cell lymphoma...
In a phase I study reported in the Journal of Clinical Oncology, Fanale et al found that brentuximab vedotin (Adcetris)—a conjugate of antibody specific for CD30 and a microtubule-disrupting chemotherapy agent—exhibited high activity when combined sequentially with CHOP...
Previous research has suggested that women with Hodgkin lymphoma who receive certain types of chemotherapy or radiotherapy are at increased risk of future infertility, but there was insufficient information to provide patients with detailed advice. In a study published in the Journal of the...
Although the majority of patients with mantle cell lymphoma respond to initial therapy, the duration of remission is typically short (1.5 to 3 years). Although bortezomib (Velcade) and lenalidomide (Revlimid) as single agents have been associated with response rates as high as 53% in patients with...
Despite advances in the treatment of diffuse large B-cell lymphoma (the most common subtype of non-Hodgkin lymphoma), including the introduction of rituximab (Rituxan), diffuse large B-cell lymphoma patients living in low-socioeconomic-status neighborhoods have a 34% greater risk of dying from...
Updated recommendations (the Lugano Classification) for initial evaluation, staging, and assessment of response in patients with Hodgkin lymphoma and non-Hodgkin lymphoma (NHL) have been presented in the Journal of Clinical Oncology by Cheson et al. The recommendations are the result of two...
Barrington et al in the International Conference on Malignant Lymphomas Imaging Working Group have presented updated consensus guidelines on 18F-fluorodeoxyglucose (FDG) positron-emission tomography (PET)-computed tomography (CT) for staging and response assessment for FDG-avid lymphomas. The...
Negative 18F–fluorodeoxyglucose positron-emission tomography (PET)/computed tomography (CT) after two cycles of chemotherapy (PET2) has been shown to be associated with favorable prognosis in Hodgkin lymphoma. In a prospective study reported in the Journal of Clinical Oncology, Hutchings et...
The U.S. Food and Drug Administration has granted Orphan Drug Designation to Mirati Therapeutics’ mocetinostat, a spectrum-selective HDAC inhibitor, for diffuse large B-cell lymphoma. In June, mocetinostat was granted Orphan Drug Designation as a treatment for myelodysplastic syndrome....
The activating mutation MYD88 L265P has been reported in approximately two-thirds of cases of primary cutaneous diffuse large B-cell lymphoma, leg-type. In a French retrospective analysis reported in JAMA Dermatology, Pham-Ledard et al confirmed the high prevalence of the mutation and documented...
Although the Bruton tyrosine kinase (BTK) inhibitor ibrutinib (Imbruvica) has shown unprecedented clinical activity in mantle cell lymphoma, about 32% of patients do not respond to the drug and majority of responders eventually relapse. Genomic sequencing of tumor and healthy tissue from patients...
The oral Bruton's tyrosine kinase inhibitor ibrutinib (Imbruvica) has shown activity in relapsed and refractory B-cell malignancies. In a phase Ib trial reported in The Lancet Oncology, Younes et al identified no maximum tolerated dose of ibrutinib when combined with R-CHOP (rituximab [Rituxan],...
The U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) has approved idelalisib (Zydelig) for the treatment of patients with three types of blood cancers. Idelalisib is being granted traditional approval to treat patients with relapsed chronic lymphocytic leukemia (CLL). Used in combination with rituximab...
The U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) has granted accelerated approval to belinostat (Beleodaq), a histone deacetylase inhibitor, for the treatment of patients with relapsed or refractory peripheral T-cell lymphoma, a rare and fast-growing type of non-Hodgkin lymphoma (NHL). “This is...
Despite some success in treating patients with Hodgkin lymphoma, many patients may experience late effects of radiation therapy and chemotherapy treatment, including the possible onset of breast cancer or heart disease. A study by Hoppe et al from the University of Florida Proton Therapy Institute...
An international, randomized phase III study found that replacing vincristine with bortezomib (Velcade) in R-CHOP (rituximab [Rituxan] plus cyclophosphamide, doxorubicin, vincristine, and prednisone) significantly improved outcomes in newly diagnosed patients with mantle cell lymphoma who were...
In an open-label phase II trial reported in The Lancet Oncology, Glass et al examined the strategy of adding rituximab (Rituxan) to standard prophylaxis for graft-vs-host disease after allogeneic stem cell transplantation in relapsed or refractory aggressive non-Hodgkin lymphoma. Rituximab did not...
Lenalidomide (Revlimid) is active in relapsed or refractory aggressive B-cell lymphomas. In a European phase II trial (REAL07) reported in The Lancet Oncology, Vitolo et al examined the addition of lenalidomide to rituximab (Rituxan), cyclophosphamide, doxorubicin, vincristine, and prednisolone...
As reported in a research letter in JAMA Dermatology, Watanabe et al found that diffuse erythema at presentation in patients with leukemic T-cell lymphoma was associated with better response to low-dose alemtuzumab (Campath) compared with patients presenting with preexisting plaques or tumors....
Positive positron-emission tomography (PET) scans have low positive predictive value after chemotherapy in patients with Hodgkin lymphoma. In a study reported in the Journal of Clinical Oncology, Kobe et al assessed whether use of pretreatment and post-treatment computed tomography (CT) could...
The results from a phase I study of a new investigational epigenetic therapy called OTX015, a small-molecule inhibitor that blocks the activity of bromodomain and extraterminal (BET)-bromodomain proteins, is showing clinical activity in some blood cancers, including leukemia and lymphoma. The study ...
The t(14;18) translocation is a hallmark and critical event in the development of follicular lymphoma, but it is also detectable in otherwise healthy persons, and its relationship to progression to disease is unclear. In a study reported in the Journal of Clinical Oncology, Roulland et al found...
The Mantle Cell Lymphoma International Prognostic Index (MIPI) was developed in 2008 as the first prognostic stratification system specific for mantle cell lymphoma (MCL). In a study reported in the Journal of Clinical Oncology, Hoster et al confirmed the validity of MIPI in a cohort of two...
Results from the BRIGHT study combined with long-term safety data from other studies suggest that bendamustine (Treanda) plus rituximab (Rituxan) “may be an important alternative treatment option” for the initial therapy of patients with low-grade non-Hodgkin lymphoma (NHL) and mantle...
The EORTC/LYSA/FIL Intergroup H10 trial assessed whether omitting involved-node radiotherapy would affect progression-free survival in patients with negative early positron-emission tomography (PET) scans after two cycles of ABVD (doxorubicin, bleomycin, vinblastine, and dacarbazine) compared with...
In an open-label phase III trial reported by Ardeshna et al in The Lancet Oncology, rituximab (Rituxan) induction plus maintenance was found to delay the need for subsequent therapy and improve elements of quality of life vs watchful waiting in patients with advanced asymptomatic nonbulky...
Follicular lymphoma has been found to respond to radiotherapy doses as low as 4 Gy. In the phase III FORT trial reported in The Lancet Oncology, Hoskin et al compared radiotherapy with 4 Gy in two fractions vs 24 Gy in 12 fractions in patients with indolent lymphoma, finding that the 24-Gy regimen...
In a study reported in the Journal of Clinical Oncology, Maurer et al found that patients with diffuse large B-cell lymphoma (DLBCL) treated with immunochemotherapy who achieve event-free survival at 24 months have overall survival that does not differ significantly from that in the general...
Mature results of a phase II study reported in the Journal of Clinical Oncology by Advani et al indicate that rituximab (Rituxan) is active in nodular lymphocyte–predominant Hodgkin lymphoma, which is characterized by expression of CD20 by malignant cells. Most patients relapsed, but durable...
In an analysis reported in the Journal of Clinical Oncology, Held et al studied elderly patients with aggressive B-cell non-Hodgkin lymphoma and bulky disease in the most effective treatment arm of the RICOVER-60 trial, which included radiotherapy. The investigators compared outcomes ...