Morel A, et al. – Experts aspired to assess the long–term outcomes of adults with first–relapsed/refractory systemic anaplastic large–cell lymphoma in the pre–brentuximab vedotin era. With no significant differences between patients with ALK(+) or ALK(-) disease, most adults with first–R/R anaplastic large-cell lymphoma (ALCL) had poor outcomes. They suggested using these findings as a reference for the evaluation of new drugs to treat R/R ALCL.

Methods

• The long-term outcomes of adults with ALCL initially treated with polychemotherapy in LYmphoma Study Association (LYSA) prospective clinical trials conducted during the pre-brentuximab vedotin era, were published.
• The long-term outcomes of those patients after the first-relapsed/refractory (R/R) events, were reported.

Results

• They examined 40 (14 ALK(+) and 26 ALK(-)) first-R/R ALCL patients and their long-term outcomes, among the 138 (64 (anaplastic lymphoma kinase (ALK(+)) and 74 ALK(-) ALCL) adults initially treated in clinical trials.
• As per observations, median follow-up from the first-R/R events was 12.5 years.
• Median [range] findings, for ALK(+) and ALK(-) patients, were as follows: age at first-R/R event: 35 [19–76] and 61 [34–81] years; time between inclusion in first-line clinical trials and first-R/R events was 6 [1.5–34] and 11.1 [1–67] months (P = 0.36); with median (95% confidence interval) progression-free survival after the first-R/R events: 3.8 (0.7–14.8) and 5.3 (2.4–8.4) months (P = 0.39); and overall survival: 13.6 (0.7–89) and 8.1 (3.3–25) months (P = 0.96). /li>
• The main cause of death was ALCL.