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The combination of rituximab and lenalidomide achieved results that were similar to those of rituximab plus chemotherapy in the treatment of previously untreated patients with advanced follicular lymphoma.

Obinutuzumab is an anti-CD20 antibody engineered to elicit killing mechanisms distinct from rituximab. In a trial of chemotherapy plus obinutuzumab or rituximab that used the antibody as maintenance therapy for 2 years, obinutuzumab prolonged progression-free survival.

Initial results from the ongoing GALLIUM trial have shown that patients with follicular lymphoma have a longer progression-free survival after first-line immunochemotherapy with obinutuzumab than with rituximab. The aim of this secondary analysis was to evaluate the prognostic value of PET–CT responses after first-line immunochemotherapy in the GALLIUM study. GALLIUM is an open-label, parallel-group randomised, phase 3 trial, which recruited previously untreated patients with CD20-positive follicular lymphoma (grades 1–3a; disease stage III/IV, or stage II with largest tumour diameter ≥7 cm) who were aged 18 years or older and met the criteria for needing treatment. Eligible patients were randomly assigned in a 1:1 ratio to receive intravenous administration of obinutuzumab (1000 mg on days 1, 8, and 15 of cycle 1, then day 1 of subsequent cycles) or rituximab (375 mg/m2 on day 1 of each cycle), in six 21-day cycles with cyclophosphamide, doxorubicin, vincristine, and prednisone (known as CHOP; oral administration) followed by two 21-day cycles of antibody alone, or eight 21-day cycles cyclophosphamide, vincristine, and prednisone (known as CVP; oral administration), or six 28-day cycles with bendamustine, followed by maintenance antibody every 2 months for up to 2 years. The primary endpoint of the trial, investigator-assessed progression-free survival, has been reported previously. This secondary analysis reports PET and CT-based responses at end-of-induction therapy and explains their relation with progression-free and overall survival outcomes in patients with available scans. As per protocol, during the trial, PET scans (mandatory in the first 170 patients enrolled at sites with available PET facilities, and optional thereafter), acquired at baseline and end of induction (PET population), were assessed prospectively by investigators and an independent review committee (IRC) applying International Harmonisation Project (IHP) 2007 response criteria, and retrospectively by the IRC only applying current Lugano 2014 response criteria. IRC members (but not study investigators) were masked to treatment and clinical outcome when assessing response. The landmark analyses excluded patients who died or progressed (contrast enhanced CT-based assessment of progressive disease, or started next anti-lymphoma treatment) before or at end of induction. GALLIUM is registered at ClinicalTrials.gov, number NCT01332968. 1202 patients were enrolled in GALLIUM between July 6, 2011, and Feb 4, 2014, of whom 595 were included in the PET population; 533 (IHP 2007; prospective analysis), and 508 (Lugano 2014; retrospective analysis) were analysed for progression-free survival (landmark analysis). At end of induction, 390 of 595 patients (65·5% [95% CI 61·6–69·4]) achieved PET complete response according to IHP 2007 criteria, and 450 (75·6% [95% CI 72·0–79·0]) obtained PET complete metabolic response according to Lugano 2014 criteria. With a median of 43·3 months of observation (IQR 36·2–51·8), 2·5-year progression-free survival from end of induction was 87·8% (95% CI 83·9–90·8) in PET complete responders and 72·0% (63·1–79·0) in non-complete responders according to IRC-assessed IHP 2007 criteria (hazard ratio [HR] 0·4, 95% CI 0·3–0·6, p<0·0001). According to Lugano 2014 criteria, 2·5-year progression-free survival in complete metabolic responders was 87·4% (95% CI 83·7–90·2) and in non-complete metabolic responders was 54·9% (40·5–67·3; HR 0·2, 95% CI 0·1–0·3, p<0·0001). Our results suggest that PET is a better imaging modality than contrast-enhanced CT for response assessment after first-line immunochemotherapy in patients with follicular lymphoma. PET assessment according to Lugano 2014 response criteria provides a platform for investigation of response-adapted therapeutic approaches. Additional supportive data are welcomed. F Hoffmann-La Roche.

Patients with advanced-stage, low-tumour-burden follicular lymphoma have conventionally undergone watchful waiting until disease progression. We assessed whether rituximab use could delay the need for chemotherapy or radiotherapy compared with watchful waiting and the effect of this strategy on quality of life (QoL). Asymptomatic patients (aged ≥18 years) with low-tumour-burden follicular lymphoma (grades 1, 2, and 3a) were randomly assigned centrally (1:1:1), by the minimisation approach stratified by institution, grade, stage, and age, to watchful waiting, rituximab 375 mg/m2 weekly for 4 weeks (rituximab induction), or rituximab induction followed by a maintenance schedule of 12 further infusions given at 2-monthly intervals for 2 years (maintenance rituximab). On Sept 30, 2007, recruitment into the rituximab induction group was closed and the study was amended to a two-arm study. The primary endpoints were time to start of new treatment and QoL at month 7 (ie, 6 months after completion of rituximab induction). All randomly assigned patients were included in the analysis of time to start of new treatment on an intention-to-treat basis. The main study is now completed and is in long-term follow-up. The study is registered with ClinicalTrials.gov, NCT00112931. Between Oct 15, 2004, and March 25, 2009, 379 patients from 118 centres in the UK, Australia, New Zealand, Turkey, and Poland were randomly assigned to watchful waiting or maintenance rituximab. 84 patients were recruited to the rituximab induction group before it was closed early. There was a significant difference in the time to start of new treatment, with 46% (95% CI 39–53) of patients in the watchful waiting group not needing treatment at 3 years compared with 88% (83–92) in the maintenance rituximab group (hazard ratio [HR] 0·21, 95% CI 0·14–0·31; p<0·0001). 78% (95% CI 69–87) of patients in the rituximab induction group did not need treatment at 3 years, which was significantly more than in the watchful waiting group (HR 0·35, 95% CI 0·22–0·56; p<0·0001), but no different compared with the maintenance rituximab group (0·75, 0·41–1·34; p=0·33). Compared with the watchful waiting group, patients in the maintenance rituximab group had significant improvements in the Mental Adjustment to Cancer scale score (p=0·0004), and Illness Coping Style score (p=0·0012) between baseline and month 7. Patients in the rituximab induction group did not show improvements in their QoL compared with the watchful waiting group. There were 18 serious adverse events reported in the rituximab groups (four in the rituximab induction group and 14 in the maintenance rituximab group), 12 of which were grade 3 or 4 (five infections, three allergic reactions, and four cases of neutropenia), all of which fully resolved. Rituximab monotherapy should be considered as a treatment option for patients with asymptomatic, advanced-stage, low-tumour-burden follicular lymphoma. Cancer Research UK, Lymphoma Research Trust, Lymphoma Association, and Roche.

Follicular lymphoma has been shown to be highly radiosensitive with responses to doses as low as 4 Gy in two fractions. This trial was designed to explore the dose response for follicular lymphoma comparing 4 Gy in two fractions with 24 Gy in 12 fractions FORT is a prospective randomised, unblinded, phase 3 non-inferiority study comparing radiotherapy given as 4 Gy in two fractions with a standard dose of 24 Gy in 12 fractions. Entry criteria included all patients aged over 18 years, having local radiotherapy for radical or palliative local control, with follicular lymphoma or marginal zone lymphoma, who had received no previous treatment for at least 1 month before. The primary outcome was time to local progression analysed on an intention-to-treat basis. Randomisation was centralised through the Cancer Research UK and University College London Cancer Trials Centre. Radiotherapy target sites were randomised (1:1) with minimisation stratified by histology (follicular lymphoma vs marginal zone lymphoma), treatment intent (palliative or curative) and centre. This trial is registered with ClinicalTrials.gov number, NCT00310167. 299 sites were randomly assigned to 24 Gy and 315 sites to 4 Gy between April 7, 2006, and June 8, 2011, at 43 centres in the UK. After a median follow-up of 26 months (range 0·39–75·4), 91 local progressions had been recorded (21 in the 24 Gy group and 70 in the 4 Gy group). Time to local progression with 4 Gy was not non-inferior to 24 Gy (hazard ratio 3·42, 95% CI 2·09–5·55, p<0·0001). Eight (3%) of 282 patients in the 24 Gy group and four (1%) of 300 in the 4 Gy group had acute grade 3–4 toxic effects. Four (1%) patients in the 24 Gy group and four (1%) patients in the 4 Gy group had late toxic effects. Mucositis was the most common event in the 24 Gy group (two patients with acute mucositis and two with late mucositis; all grade 3) and was not reported in the 4 Gy group. The most common acute effect was pain at the site of irradiation (two patients in the 4 Gy group, one patient in the 24 Gy group; all grade 3), and the most common late effect was fatigue (two patients in the 4 Gy group, one patient in the 24 Gy group; all grade 3). 24 Gy in 12 fractions is the more effective radiation schedule for indolent lymphoma and should be regarded as the standard of care. However, 4 Gy remains a useful alternative for palliative treatment. Cancer Research UK.

Fludarabine combinations are very affective in follicular lymphoma (FL) with high rates of complete response and prolonged survival. However, late toxicities could be a concern. The aim of the present study was to analyze the long-term impact on survival, relapse and late toxicities of a trial of treatment with fludarabine, mitoxantrone and cyclophosphamide (FCM regimen) for untreated patients with advanced stage FL. One hundred and twenty patients enrolled in a phase 2 trial of treatment with FCM regimen between 2000 and 2003 were evaluated. After a median follow-up of 12 years, 52 patients eventually relapsed/progressed with 10 year progression-free survival (PFS) of 46 %. Ten patients showed histological transformation to aggressive lymphoma with a risk of transformation of 2 and 9 % at 5 and 10 years, respectively. Three patients developed therapy-related myelodysplastic syndrome/acute myeloid leukaemia (MDS/AML) and seven solid neoplasms with an overall risk of 3 and 8 % at 5 and 10 years, respectively. Twenty-six patients eventually died during the follow-up. Overall survival at 10 years was 83 %. In conclusion, FCM regimen allows excellent long-lasting response in previously untreated patients with FL. The incidence of late events including histological transformation and secondary neoplasia is low but not negligible.

Follicular lymphoma (FL) is the most frequent indolent lymphoma in Western countries, but it is less frequent in Asia. Several trials have demonstrated the progression‐free benefit of rituximab maintenance for FL patients in Western countries. However, the overall survival (OS) benefits and effectiveness of rituximab maintenance in Asian FL patients remain uncertain. We utilized the Taiwan Cancer Registry Database and the National Health Insurance Research Database to investigate the roles of rituximab maintenance for newly diagnosed FL patients in Taiwan. Among 836 patients with newly diagnosed FL during 2009‐2012, we enrolled patients with stage II‐IV diseases receiving 4‐8 cycles of rituximab‐containing induction chemotherapies (R‐induction). We excluded those who died or received additional chemotherapy within 180 days after R‐induction. Among the 396 enrolled patients, 260 underwent rituximab maintenance (R‐maintenance group), and 136 served as the observation group. The R‐maintenance group received less anthracycline and fewer cycles of R‐induction than the observation group, but they exhibited a significantly better OS both in the univariate and multivariate analyses [hazard ratio, 0.42; 95% confidence interval, 0.19‐0.91] after adjusting for age, sex, and Ann Arbor stages. Meanwhile, we also found more patients required further therapies in the first 6 months after the cease of rituximab maintenance. In the subgroup analysis, patients older than 60 years or with stage IV diseases benefited more from rituximab maintenance. Conclusively, our nationwide study is the first one to demonstrate the OS benefit of rituximab maintenance after induction therapies in newly diagnosed FL patients from Asian populations. Rituximab maintenance improves the overall survival for the patients with follicular lymphoma in Taiwan. The subgroup analysis shows that older patients or those with stage IV disease benefit more from rituximab maintenance. Our study is the first study to demonstrate the real‐world utilization and benefit of rituximab maintenance in the patients with follicular lymphoma.

Three sequential phase II trials were conducted with different immunotherapy approaches to enhance the outcome of autologous transplant (high-dose therapy and autologous stem cell transplantation (HDT/ASCT)) for recurrent follicular lymphoma. Seventy-three patients were enrolled from 1996 to 2009. Patients received HDT/ASCT combined with (1) interferon-α 3 MU/m 2 subcutaneously (SC) three times per week (TIW) for 2 years post-ASCT, (2) rituximab (R) 375 mg/m 2 for in vivo purging 3–5 days pre-stem cell collection and 2 × 4 weekly R at 2 and 6 months post-ASCT, respectively, or (3) three infusions of R pre-stem cell collection followed by 6× R weekly and interferon-α 3 MU/m 2 SC TIW. Although not statistically significant, progression-free survival (PFS) for patients who received rituximab was 56.4 and 49.1 % at 5 and 10 years compared to 36 and 21 % in those who did not receive rituximab. Molecular relapse post-HDT/ASCT was the strongest predictor of PFS in a multivariate analysis. Molecular relapse was coincident with or preceded clinical relapses in 84 % of patients who relapsed—median of 12 months (range 0–129 months). Adverse events included secondary malignancy, transformation to diffuse large B cell lymphoma, prolonged mostly asymptomatic hypogammaglobulinemia, and pulmonary fibrosis. The long-term toxicity profile must be considered when selecting patients for this treatment.

The purpose of this study was to compare the efficacy and toxicity of bendamustine, vincristine + prednisone (BOP) with a standard regimen of cyclophosphamide, vincristine + prednisone (COP) in patients with previously untreated advanced indolent non-Hodgkin's lymphoma (NHL) and mantle cell lymphoma. A total of 164 patients with follicular lymphoma (grade 1/2), mantle cell lymphoma or lymphoplasmacytic lymphoma (immunocytoma) was randomised to treatment with vincristine 2 mg (day 1) and prednisone 100 mg/m2 (days 1-5) + bendamustine 60 mg/m2 (days 1-5) or + cyclophosphamide 400 mg/m2 (days 1-5) for a total of eight 21-day cycles. The rate of complete remission was 22% with BOP and 20% with COP. The projected 5-year survival rate was 61% with BOP and 46% with COP. The BOP-associated 5-year survival advantage almost reached significance in the subgroup of patients who responded to therapy (74% vs. 56%; P = 0.05), and did reach significance in responders who did not receive interferon maintenance therapy (70% vs. 47%; P = 0.03). Toxicity was acceptable in both treatment groups, although alopecia and leucopenia were more severe with COP. Bendamustine can efficaciously and safely replace cyclophosphamide, as used in standard COP therapy, for the treatment of patients with indolent NHL and mantle cell lymphoma. Long-term survival data suggest a clinically significant benefit for patients treated with BOP.

Axicabtagene ciloleucel is an autologous anti-CD19 chimeric antigen receptor (CAR) T-cell therapy. In the previous analysis of the ZUMA-1 registrational study, with a median follow-up of 15·4 months (IQR 13·7–17·3), 89 (82%) of 108 assessable patients with refractory large B-cell lymphoma treated with axicabtagene ciloleucel achieved an objective response, and complete responses were noted in 63 (58%) patients. Here we report long-term activity and safety outcomes of the ZUMA-1 study. ZUMA-1 is a single-arm, multicentre, registrational trial at 22 sites in the USA and Israel. Eligible patients were aged 18 years or older, and had histologically confirmed large B-cell lymphoma—including diffuse large B-cell lymphoma, primary mediastinal B-cell lymphoma, and transformed follicular lymphoma—according to the 2008 WHO Classification of Tumors of Hematopoietic and Lymphoid Tissue; refractory disease or relapsed after autologous stem-cell transplantation; an Eastern Cooperative Oncology Group performance status of 0 or 1; and had previously received an anti-CD20 monoclonal antibody containing-regimen and an anthracycline-containing chemotherapy. Participants received one dose of axicabtagene ciloleucel on day 0 at a target dose of 2 × 106 CAR T cells per kg of bodyweight after conditioning chemotherapy with intravenous fludarabine (30 mg/m2 body-surface area) and cyclophosphamide (500 mg/m2 body-surface area) on days −5, −4, and −3. The primary endpoints were safety for phase 1 and the proportion of patients achieving an objective response for phase 2, and key secondary endpoints were overall survival, progression-free survival, and duration of response. Pre-planned activity and safety analyses were done per protocol. ZUMA-1 is registered with ClinicalTrials.gov, number NCT02348216. Although the registrational cohorts are closed, the trial remains open, and recruitment to extension cohorts with alternative endpoints is underway. Between May 19, 2015, and Sept 15, 2016, 119 patients were enrolled and 108 received axicabtagene ciloleucel across phases 1 and 2. As of the cutoff date of Aug 11, 2018, 101 patients assessable for activity in phase 2 were followed up for a median of 27·1 months (IQR 25·7–28·8), 84 (83%) had an objective response, and 59 (58%) had a complete response. The median duration of response was 11·1 months (4·2–not estimable). The median overall survival was not reached (12·8–not estimable), and the median progression-free survival was 5·9 months (95% CI 3·3–15·0). 52 (48%) of 108 patients assessable for safety in phases 1 and 2 had grade 3 or worse serious adverse events. Grade 3 or worse cytokine release syndrome occurred in 12 (11%) patients, and grade 3 or worse neurological events in 35 (32%). Since the previous analysis at 1 year, additional serious adverse events were reported in four patients (grade 3 mental status changes, grade 4 myelodysplastic syndrome, grade 3 lung infection, and two episodes of grade 3 bacteraemia), none of which were judged to be treatment related. Two treatment-related deaths (due to haemophagocytic lymphohistiocytosis and cardiac arrest) were previously reported, but no new treatment-related deaths occurred during the additional follow-up. These 2-year follow-up data from ZUMA-1 suggest that axicabtagene ciloleucel can induce durable responses and a median overall survival of greater than 2 years, and has a manageable long-term safety profile in patients with relapsed or refractory large B-cell lymphoma. Kite and the Leukemia & Lymphoma Society Therapy Acceleration Program.