Twenty-year disease and treatment-associated mortality rates of patients with Hodgkin lymphoma of clinical stages IIIB and IV prospectively treated with 3-month anthracycline-based chemotherapy followed by extended high-dose radiation.

BACKGROUND

In 1981, the authors developed an original strategy combining 3 cycles of doxorubicin (adriamycin), bleomycin, vinblastine, and dacarbazine (ABVD) or ABVD-like chemotherapy and extended high-dose radiation for treating patients with clinical stages IIIB and IV Hodgkin lymphoma (HL). In the current study, the authors analyzed the 20-year results of this treatment as applied to 213 patients according to 2 successive trials.

METHODS

All patients who responded to chemotherapy received extended high-dose radiation. The rates of complete remission (CR), freedom from disease progression (FFP), HL-specific survival (HLSS), second tumors and cardiac events, freedom from treatment-associated mortality (FFTM), overall survival (OS), and event-free survival were calculated.

RESULTS

In December 2006, the median follow-up of the surviving patients exceeded 13 years; 102 patients (48%) achieved a CR after chemotherapy and 178 patients (84%) did so after radiotherapy. The rates of FFP (61%, quasi-stable after 6 years) and HLSS (81.6%, stable after 12 years) were found to be significantly higher in patients who achieved a CR after chemotherapy. The incidence of hematologic malignancies was 10.9% (with 10 of 12 events occurring within the first 7 years). The rates of solid tumors (32.4%), cardiac events (33.4%), and FFTM (65.6%) did not reach any plateau by 20 years and were found to be significantly associated with patient age. The 20-year OS rate was 48%.

CONCLUSIONS

This combined modality treatment gave long-term results similar to those obtained using 6 to 8 cycles of ABVD. Response to the initial brief chemotherapy administration was found to be predictive of the FFP and HLSS rates. The low rate of FFTM was the result of extended high-dose radiation. The results of the current study should help to design future trials for treating patients with advanced stages of HL.