Total-body irradiation with 25-MV photons in advanced non-Hodgkin's lymphoma and chronic lymphocytic leukemia. Preliminary results and complications.

Patients with chronic lymphocytic leukemia (CLL) and non-Hodgkin's lymphoma were treated with total-body irradiation (TBI). One group was treated after chemotherapy failed, while the other group received TBI initially. TBI was ineffective against CLL after chemotherapy failed. All patients with lymphocytic lymphoma who initially responded to chemotherapy but later relapsed were helped by TBI, as were 88% of patients with previously untreated lymphocytic lymphomas.