Comparison of first-line treatment with bendamustine plus rituximab versus R-CHOP for patients with follicular lymphoma grade 3A: Results of a retrospective study from the Fondazione Italiana Linfomi.

Abstract

In the setting of follicular lymphoma (FL), frontline therapy with rituximab, cyclophosphamide, doxorubicin, and prednisone (R-CHOP) has represented for many years the standard of care for patients with symptomatic advanced disease. More recently, the combination of bendamustine plus rituximab (R-B) has emerged as an alternative therapeutic option. We present a retrospective, multicenter, observational study aimed at comparing outcomes and toxicities observed in 145 patients diagnosed with grade 3A FL treated with a first line therapy in 15 Italian Fondazione Italiana Linfomi centers between the 1st of January 2014 and the 30th of May 2018. Seventy patients were treated with R-B and 75 with R-CHOP. In the R-B group, the median age at the time of diagnosis was 67 years compared with 59 years in the R-CHOP group. Patients in R-B group achieved a similar overall response rate (96% vs. 99%) and a better complete remission rate (87% vs. 80%, p=0.035) compared with patients in R-CHOP group. Progression free survival (PFS) was similar between individual treated with R-CHOP and R-B (48- month PFS 77.7% vs. 76.6% respectively, p=0.745). The overall survival was significantly longer with R-CHOP treatment (HR=0.16; 95% IC, 0.04-0.74; p=0.007); however, no statistical significant difference was observed after adjustment for age. With the limitations of the study design, our results suggest that both R-B and R-CHOP seem to be valid first-line treatment options in FL3A.

• Authors: Gloria Margiotta-Casaluci, Sara Bigliardi, Federica Cocito, Erika Meli, Luigi Petrucci, Maura Nicolosi, Ombretta Annibali, Carola Boccomini, Valentina Bozzoli, Alessia Castellino, Federica Cattina, Natalia Cenfra, Sabino Ciavarella, Sofya Kovalchuk, Francesco Rotondo, Angelo Fama, Jacopo Olivieri, Francesco Zaja
• Journal: Frontiers in oncology (Front Oncol) Vol. 13 Pg. 1120967 ( 2023) ISSN: 2234-943X [Print] Switzerland
• PMID: 36969038 (Publication Type: Journal Article)
• Copyright: Copyright © 2023 Margiotta-Casaluci, Bigliardi, Cocito, Meli, Petrucci, Nicolosi, Annibali, Boccomini, Bozzoli, Castellino, Cattina, Cenfra, Ciavarella, Kovalchuk, Rotondo, Fama, Olivieri and Zaja.