Klin Onkol 2016; 29(5): 342-346. DOI: 10.14735/amko2016342.
High-dose chemotherapy with autologous stem cell transplantation remains the current standard of treatment for young patients with Hodgkin lymphoma in first relapse or in those who are refractory to first-line treatment. The most important prognostic factors in relapses are clinical stage IV, poor performance status, bulky mass, and less than partial remission after salvage chemotherapy. Standard salvage chemotherapy in relapse before autologous transplantation has not been defined; however, DHAP and ICE are most frequently used in this setting. A standard conditioning regimen before autologous transplantation is BEAM. Tandem autologous transplantation has been investigated in high-risk patients. Brentuximab vedotin is recommended as a consolidation treatment in patients with a high risk of relapse after autologous transplantation. Brentuximab vedotin is the standard of treatment for relapse after autologous transplantation, and subsequent allogeneic stem cell transplantation should be considered in young patients. Bretuximab vedotin in combination with bendamustine, nivolumab, and pembrolizumab, and combinations thereof with other drugs, were investigated in clinical trials in relapsed or refractory patients with Hodgkin lymphoma.
