Mitoxantrone, cisplatin, and methyl-glyoxal bis-guanylhydrazone chemotherapy for refractory malignant lymphoma: A Southwest Oncology Group phase II trial

A phase II trial of combination chemotherapy with mitoxantrone, cisplatin, and methyl-glyoxal bix-guanylhydrazone (MGBG) was conducted in 32 patients with unfavorable histology malignant lymphoma. All patients had relapsed after only one prior chemotherapy regimen (CHOP — 56%; mBACOD — 28%). There were three complete and eight partial responses (overall response rate — 34%) among 32 eligible patients. The median duration of remission was 6.0 months. Severe granulocytopenia was common, with 19/32 patients (63%) suffering life-threatening, and 1/32 (3%) suffering fatal, granulocytopenia.