title: Rituximab in Hodgkin lymphoma: is the target always a hit?
abstract: In 1997, the anti-CD20 monoclonal antibody (MAb) rituximab became the first MAb approved for clinical use in oncology, and ushered in a new era of rationally designed targeted agents in cancer therapeutics. It is currently approved for use in non-Hodgkin lymphoma (NHL), chronic lymphoid leukemia (CLL), and rheumatoid arthritis (RA). Rituximab is non-mutagenic, associated with low treatment-related toxicity, and few, if any, long term adverse events, making it an attractive agent to be tried in off-label settings like Hodgkin lymphoma (HL). HL consists of two distinct subtypes - classic HL (cHL) and lymphocyte predominant HL (LPHL). CD20 is present in virtually all patients with LPHL, and in a significant minority of patients with cHL. In this CD20 positive sub-population, the use of rituximab is a rational intervention strategy. Rituximab has been used in patients with cHL as well as LPHL with good efficacy. In this article, we provide a clinically-oriented overview of the use of rituximab in the different sub-types of HL, and report updated results of our series of 8 LPHL patients treated with rituximab. A systematic review of the literature is also presented.
authors.affiliation: Department of Medical Oncology, Jules Bordet Institute, Université Libre de Bruxelles, Brussels, Belgium.
authors.forename: Kamal S
authors.initials: KS
authors.lastname: Saini
authors.forename: Hatem A
authors.initials: HA
authors.lastname: Azim
authors.forename: Emilia
authors.initials: E
authors.lastname: Cocorocchio
authors.forename: Anna
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Vanazzi
authors.forename: Monika Lamba
authors.initials: ML
authors.lastname: Saini
authors.forename: Paola Rafaniello
authors.initials: PR
authors.lastname: Raviele
authors.forename: Giancarlo
authors.initials: G
authors.lastname: Pruneri
authors.forename: Fedro A
authors.initials: FA
authors.lastname: Peccatori
mesh_terms: D000328:Adult; D058846:Antibodies, Monoclonal, Murine-Derived / Q000008:administration & dosage* / Q000009:adverse effects; D000970:Antineoplastic Agents / Q000008:administration & dosage* / Q000009:adverse effects; D001707:Biopsy, Needle; D018572:Disease-Free Survival; D004305:Dose-Response Relationship, Drug; D004334:Drug Administration Schedule; D005260:Female; D006689:Hodgkin Disease / Q000188:drug therapy* / Q000401:mortality / Q000473:pathology*; D006801:Humans; D007150:Immunohistochemistry; D007262:Infusions, Intravenous; D008297:Male; D008875:Middle Aged; D009367:Neoplasm Staging; D011379:Prognosis; D000069283:Rituximab; D016019:Survival Analysis; D016896:Treatment Outcome
chemical_list: D058846:Antibodies, Monoclonal, Murine-Derived; D000970:Antineoplastic Agents; D000069283:Rituximab