Abstract
The purpose of this national retrospective study was to evaluate the outcome in children with relapsed or primary refractory Hodgkin lymphoma [HL] after a primary chemotherapy alone treatment strategy. Between 2000 and 2005, 80 children with relapsed [n = 69] or primary refractory [n = 11] HL were treated on a standardized treatment protocol of 4-6 cycles of EPIC [etoposide, prednisolone, ifosfamide and cisplatin] chemotherapy. Radiotherapy was recommended to all relapsed sites. High dose therapy with stem cell rescue [SCT] was recommended for patients with poor response. The 5-year overall survival [OS] and progression-free survival from relapse was 75·8% [64·8-83·9] and 59·9% [48·3-69·7] respectively. Duration of first remission was strongly associated with OS; risk of death was decreased by 53% [Hazard ratio (HR): 0·47, 95% confidence interval (CI): 0·19-1·18] for those with a time from end of treatment to relapse of 3-12 months (compared to <3 months) and reduced by 80% (HR 0·20, 95% CI: 0·04-0·90) for those >12 months after end of treatment. Other poor prognostic factors included advanced stage disease at relapse and B symptoms at first diagnosis. The most important factor associated with salvage failure was time to relapse. Survival outcome in children with primary refractory HL is poor.
Sign-in/Register to access full text options 
Talk to us
Join us for a 30 min session where you can share your feedback and ask us any queries you have
Schedule a callDisclaimer: All third-party content on this website/platform is and will remain the property of their respective owners and is provided on "as is" basis without any warranties, express or implied. Use of third-party content does not indicate any affiliation, sponsorship with or endorsement by them. Any references to third-party content is to identify the corresponding services and shall be considered fair use under The CopyrightLaw.
