Prolonged disease-free survival in relapsed/refractory low-grade lymphoma treated with fludarabine: a report of four cases.
We report four patients with relapsed or refractory follicular (three) and lymphoplasmacytic (one) lymphoma who achieved complete remission (CR) with fludarabine (FDR) lasting from 3.2 to 6 years. One had stage III and three stage IV and were resistant to chlorambucil and/or anthracycline. FDR was well tolerated, the only complication being herpes zoster infection in three patients, which was controlled with aciclovir. One patient developed a gastric MALT lymphoma from a different clone than the follicular lymphoma. In conclusion, some patients with refractory low-grade lymphoma achieve long-term CR with FDR: therefore this agent may be considered as alternative to stem-cell transplantation.
Academic Department of Haematology and Cytogenetics, The Royal Marsden Hospital, London.
A J
AJ
Sternberg
E
E
Matutes
S
S
Killick
A C
AC
Wotherspoon
D
D
Catovsky
D000328:Adult; D018943:Anthracyclines / Q000627:therapeutic use; D000970:Antineoplastic Agents / Q000627:therapeutic use*; D018906:Antineoplastic Agents, Alkylating / Q000627:therapeutic use; D000971:Antineoplastic Combined Chemotherapy Protocols / Q000627:therapeutic use; D002699:Chlorambucil / Q000627:therapeutic use; D003520:Cyclophosphamide / Q000627:therapeutic use; D019008:Drug Resistance, Neoplasm; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D008224:Lymphoma, Follicular / Q000188:drug therapy*; D008228:Lymphoma, Non-Hodgkin / Q000188:drug therapy*; D008297:Male; D008875:Middle Aged; D011241:Prednisone / Q000627:therapeutic use; D014740:Vidarabine / Q000031:analogs & derivatives* / Q000627:therapeutic use; D014750:Vincristine / Q000627:therapeutic use
D018943:Anthracyclines; D000970:Antineoplastic Agents; D018906:Antineoplastic Agents, Alkylating; D002699:Chlorambucil; D014750:Vincristine; D003520:Cyclophosphamide; D014740:Vidarabine; C024352:fludarabine; D011241:Prednisone