Brentuximab Vedotin and Pembrolizumab Combination in Patients with Relapsed/Refractory Hodgkin Lymphoma: A Single-Centre Retrospective Analysis

Simple Summary The standard treatment for Hodgkin lymphoma (HL) patients presenting a relapsed/refractory (R/R) disease is salvage chemotherapy followed by autologous stem cell transplantation (ASCT). With commonly used chemotherapy combinations, 25-30% fail to proceed to ASCT, with poor outcomes. The aim of this retrospective study was to evaluate the efficacy of brentuximab vedotin (BV) and pembrolizumab combination as a bridge to ASCT in R/R HL patients. We retrospectively collected data from 10 patients, 8 male and 2 female, with a median age of 30.7 years. The median follow-up time was 16.5 months, while the median number of received cycles of treatment was 4 (2-7). Eight patients proceeded to ASCT (80%) and seven of them to subsequent BV maintenance, with two early disease progression (PD). The BV and pembrolizumab combination is a very effective bridge treatment to ASCT for high-risk R/R HL patients. Classical Hodgkin lymphoma (HL) patients presenting a relapsed/refractory (R/R) disease are currently managed with salvage chemotherapy followed by autologous stem cell transplantation (ASCT). However, almost 25-30% of these patients fail to achieve a complete response (CR) with standard salvage regimens. In this retrospective study, we evaluated the efficacy of a combination of brentuximab vedotin (BV) and pembrolizumab in a series of HL patients presenting with a high-risk, multi-refractory disease. Patients achieving a Deauville score <= 4 proceeded to ASCT consolidation. After ASCT, patients received BV as maintenance for a total of 16 administrations. We collected data from 10 patients with a median age of 30.7 years. At a median follow-up of 16.5 months, we reported a complete metabolic remission (CMR) in eight patients (80%), with seven patients (70%) directly proceeding to ASCT (the other two patients in CMR are still undergoing treatment). BV consolidation was started in six patients and completed by three patients (one ongoing, two interruption). Two patients (20%) presented a progressive disease (PD) and subsequently died, while the others are still in CMR. The BV and pembrolizumab combination is a very effective bridge treatment to ASCT for high-risk R/R HL patients.

Automated summary

This retrospective study evaluated the efficacy of a combination of brentuximab vedotin and pembrolizumab as a bridge treatment to autologous stem cell transplantation (ASCT) in relapsed/refractory Hodgkin lymphoma (HL) patients. The results showed that this combination therapy is highly effective for high-risk patients.