title: The best treatment for diffuse large B-cell lymphoma: a German perspective.
abstract: While some improvement was achieved by adding etoposide and shortening the treatment intervals from 3 to 2 weeks (CHOEP-14), best results in young good-prognosis patients (age-adjusted International Prognostic Index [IPI] = 0,1) have been achieved with six cycles of CHOP (cyclophosphamide, doxorubicin HCl, vincristine [Oncovin], prednisone)-like chemotherapy in combination with the anti-CD20 antibody rituximab (Rituxan). The role of additional radiotherapy in this setting remains to be determined. With this approach, 2-year event-free survival rates of > 90% and overall survival of > 95% can be achieved in a very favorable subgroup (patients without IPI risk factor and no bulky disease), while further improvement is warranted for the less favorable subgroup (event-free survival only 77%). For young poor-prognosis patients (age-adjusted IPI > or = 2), the 5-year survival is around 50%, and progress has not been convincingly and specifically demonstrated in these patients. Ongoing studies will show whether dose-dense conventional or high-dose chemotherapy regimens requiring stem cell support in combination with rituximab will result in similar improvements of outcome as has been reported recently for young patients with good-prognosis aggressive lymphoma. In elderly patients, CHOP interval reduction from 3 to 2 weeks (CHOP-14) and the addition of rituximab to CHOP-21 achieved similar improvements in outcome. The ongoing RICOVER-60 (rituximab with CHOP over 60) trial of the German High-Grade Non-Hodgkin's Lymphoma Study Group (DSHNHL) evaluates whether the combination of both approaches (R-CHOP-14) can further improve the prognosis of elderly patients.
authors.affiliation: German High-Grade Non-Hodgkin's Lymphoma Study Group (DSHNHL), Homburg/Saar Germany.
authors.forename: Rudolf
authors.initials: R
authors.lastname: Schmits
authors.forename: Norbert
authors.initials: N
authors.lastname: Schmitz
authors.forename: Michael
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Pfreundschuh
mesh_terms: D000971:Antineoplastic Combined Chemotherapy Protocols / Q000627:therapeutic use*; D003520:Cyclophosphamide / Q000008:administration & dosage; D018450:Disease Progression; D018572:Disease-Free Survival; D004317:Doxorubicin / Q000008:administration & dosage; D005858:Germany; D006801:Humans; D016393:Lymphoma, B-Cell / Q000188:drug therapy* / Q000473:pathology; D016403:Lymphoma, Large B-Cell, Diffuse / Q000188:drug therapy* / Q000473:pathology; D011241:Prednisone / Q000008:administration & dosage; D011379:Prognosis; D014750:Vincristine / Q000008:administration & dosage
chemical_list: D014750:Vincristine; D004317:Doxorubicin; D003520:Cyclophosphamide; D011241:Prednisone