Methyl-GAG, ifosfamide, methotrexate and etoposide (MIME) as salvage therapy for Hodgkin's disease and non-Hodgkin's lymphoma. The Swedish Lymphoma Study Group.

One hundred and three patients with recurrent or refractory Hodgkin's disease (HD) or non-Hodgkin's lymphoma (NHL) treated with MIME (methyl-GAG, ifosfamide, methotrexate, etoposide) were retrospectively studied. Thirty-seven of the 44 patients with HD, 34/47 with high-grade malignant and 9/12 with low-grade malignant NHL were evaluable for response. Of the 37 evaluable patients with HD, 16 (43%) achieved complete remission (CR) and 4 partial remission (PR), giving a total response rate of 54%. Of the 34 evaluable patients with high-grade NHL, 5 achieved CR and 8 PR, giving a response rate of 38%. Of 9 evaluable patients with low-grade NHL, 2 achieved CR. The main toxicity was leukopenia, thrombocytopenia and infections. Twenty-six per cent of the patients developed septicaemia, which was fatal in 6 cases (6%). We conclude that MIME as salvage regimen can induce complete remissions in lymphoma patients, particularly in HD with previous heavy treatment, and that it is relatively well tolerated.