High-dose chemotherapy and auto-SCT for relapsed and refractory Hodgkin’s lymphoma patients refractory to first-line salvage chemotherapy but responsive to second-line salvage chemotherapy

Relapsed or primary refractory Hodgkin’s lymphoma (HL) patients refractory to first-line salvage chemotherapy (first salvage) and unable to undergo high-dose chemotherapy (HDC) and autologous stem cell transplant (auto-SCT) have very poor outcome. Some patients are offered second-line salvage chemotherapy (second salvage), if they are responsive and may receive HDC auto-SCT. We identified 31 patients (18 males, 13 females) from 1996–2012 who received second salvage prior to auto-SCT. Median age at auto-SCT is 22 years. Patients were grouped as (1) relapsed–refractory (Rel:Ref): patients with prior complete response (CR) and on relapse found refractory to first salvage and received second salvage and (2) refractory–refractory (Ref:Ref): patients refractory to both primary treatment and first salvage and received second salvage. Median follow-up is 63 months (18–170). Disease status after second salvage prior to HDC was CR 16 %, partial response (PR) 71 % and stable disease 13 %. After HDC auto-SCT, CR:PR: progressive disease was observed in 18 (58 %): four (12 %): nine (29 %) patients, respectively. Five-year overall survival (OS) for whole group is 57 % (Rel:Ref vs. Ref:Ref, 73 % vs. 48 %, p = 0.48). Progression-free survival (PFS) for whole group is 52 % (Rel:Ref vs. Ref:Ref, 73 % vs. 40 % respectively, p = 0.11). Second-line salvage is a valid approach with no long-term side effects for those HL patients who do not respond to first-line salvage chemotherapy and they can be candidate of HDC and stem cell transplant with a high ORR, the PFS and OS in relapse–refractory and refractory–refractory group of patients.