CLINICAL NEWS
Literature Scan
• Have undergone AHCT
during first remission
(p<0.001)
• Be in complete
remission (p=0.002)
• Have received
conditioning without
radiation (p=0.001)
• Have undergone
AHCT more recently
than those who did not
(p=0.009)
After a median follow-up
of five years, the researchers found that maintenance
rituximab was associated
with both improved PFS
(hazard ratio [HR] = 0.44;
95% CI 0.24-0.80; p=0.007)
and improved OS (HR=0.46;
95% CI 0.23-0.93; p=0.03).
On the safety side, grade
4 neutropenia did occur
at an increased rate in the
maintenance rituximab
group compared with those
who did not receive it: 34
percent versus 18 percent,
respectively (p=0.04).
“Our data encompassed
a wide span of time during
which additional effective therapies in MCL were
introduced and may have
improved OS in patients
with progression of disease
after AHCT,” Dr. Graf and
authors noted, including
proteasome inhibitors and
immunomodulators, but an
analysis showed no association between the time period
of AHCT and the effect of
maintenance rituximab on
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