These tools will no longer be maintained as of December 31, 2024. Archived website can be found here. PubMed4Hh GitHub repository can be found here. Contact NLM Customer Service if you have questions.


Pubmed for Handhelds

PUBMED FOR HANDHELDS

Search MEDLINE/PubMed

  • Title: Rituximab as first-line and maintenance therapy for patients with indolent non-Hodgkin's lymphoma: interim follow-up of a multicenter phase II trial.
    Author: Hainsworth JD.
    Journal: Semin Oncol; 2002 Feb; 29(1 Suppl 2):25-9. PubMed ID: 11842385.
    Abstract:
    The purpose of this study is to evaluate the activity of rituximab (Rituxan; Genentech, Inc, South San Francisco, CA, and IDEC Pharmaceuticals, San Diego, CA) in the first-line treatment of patients with indolent non-Hodgkin's lymphoma, and to evaluate the role of scheduled maintenance courses of rituximab in prolonging duration of remission. Sixty-two patients with stages II to IV indolent non-Hodgkin's lymphoma (follicular or small lymphocytic) who had received no previous systemic therapy entered this multicenter, community-based trial. All patients received rituximab 375 mg/m(2) weekly for 4 consecutive weeks, and were evaluated for response at week 6. Patients who had an objective response or stable disease continued treatment every 6 months with repeat 4-week courses of rituximab for a total of four treatment courses. Interim results of this ongoing trial are available. When evaluated at week 6, 28 of 60 evaluable patients (47%) had objective response and 27 patients (45%) had minor response or stable disease. With further follow-up and repeat courses of rituximab, the major response rate increased from 47% to 65% and the complete response rate increased from 7% to 27%. Response rates were similar in patients with follicular lymphoma and small lymphocytic lymphoma (63% and 66%, respectively). Median progression-free survival has not been reached, but will be greater than 24 months. There has been no cumulative toxicity observed with repeat courses of rituximab. Rituximab is highly effective as a first-line single agent for the treatment of indolent non-Hodgkin's lymphoma. The initial response rate can be improved by using scheduled maintenance courses of rituximab administered every 6 months. Final information regarding duration of response and time to progression awaits further follow-up.
    [Abstract] [Full Text] [Related] [New Search]