Patterns and predictors of relapse in primary gastric diffuse large B cell lymphoma (DLBCL) were variably reported. Our study aims to evaluate the patterns and predictors of relapse in early-stage gastric DLBCL treated with Rituximab, Cyclophosphamide, Doxorubicin, Vincristine, and Prednisolone (RCHOP).From 2005 to 2019, the medical records of 72 patients with stage I or stage II gastric DLBCL treated with six cycles of RCHOP without radiotherapy were reviewed. Different variables were correlated with progression free survival (PFS), overall survival (OS), and local relapse free survival (LRFS).64 (88.1%) patients achieved a complete response (CR), while 8 (11.9%) had refractory disease. After CR, 9 (14%) patients relapsed; 7 (78%) relapses were loco-regional. Abnormal LDH (p = 0.028), H. pylori negative (p = 0.032) and, stage adjusted international prognostic index (sa-IPI) > 1 (p = 0.013) correlated with loco-regional failure. The 5-year PFS, OS, and LRFS were 74.8%, 75.3%, and 87.5%, respectively, after a median follow-up of 58 (range: 6-185) months. The median time to progression or relapse was 9 months (range: 5-54 months). In multivariate analysis, a sa-IPI >1 (HR: 3.56, CI: 1.35-8.8, p = 0.01) was associated with PFS while low albumin (HR: 8.85, CI: 1.09-71.4, p = 0.041) was associated with worse OS. None of the variables were associated with LRFS.Treatment of primary gastric DLBCL with RCHOP results in a high CR rate. The majority of treatment failures were loco-regional. Sa-IPI and H. pylori status may be used to identify patients who may benefit from combined modality treatment.
Hematopoietic cell transplantation (HCT) is a potentially curative therapy for patients with high-risk malignant and nonmalignant conditions. Nevertheless, various post-allogeneic HCT (allo-HCT) complications with diverse chronology, etiology, and pathophysiological background can develop, including general and organ-specific complications, such as graft dysfunction, infectious, and non-infectious etiologies, as well as non-infectious pulmonary complications (NIPCs). Post-transplant complications can also be related to conditioning intensity and drug-specific side effects. However, treatment options for these complications are suboptimal at present. Poor graft function (PGF) is a potentially life-threatening post-allo-HCT complication and is reported in 5-30% of patients. Nevertheless, consensus guidelines to define and treat PGF are not available. Most therapies are symptomatic with variable success rates. NIPCs are diverse and difficult to diagnose. The pathophysiology of NIPCs remains ill-defined, and effective treatment approaches have not been standardized, with mortality exceeding 50% for some conditions, such as idiopathic pneumonia syndrome (IPS). Modification of the conditioning regimen intensity and introduction of novel agents have been used to decrease post-allo-HCT complications, including infections, non-infectious complications, graft-versus-host disease (GvHD), as well as cardiopulmonary, neurological, hepatorenal, and other complications. Transplant-associated thrombotic microangiopathy (TA-TMA) is a lethal post-allo-HCT complication that may be associated with functional and genetic abnormalities in complement activation and related to the use of calcineurin inhibitors, such as cyclosporine and tacrolimus. The introduction of complement inhibitors has transformed TA-TMA from a lethal complication to a treatable syndrome.
