Evaluating gemcitabine and vinorelbine as an outpatient treatment of relapsed childhood Hodgkin lymphoma.

This study was carried out to assess the safety and effectiveness of a chemotherapy regimen including gemcitabine (Gemzar) and vinorelbine (Navelbine) for relapsed childhood Hodgkin lymphoma (HL). The authors found that this regimen is effective in treating childhood HL in the outpatient setting and there was low toxicity from the drug combination. 

Around 10-20% of children with HL relapse after first-line treatment. Gemcitabine and vinorelbine (GV) are chemotherapy medications used to treat HL. GV has previously shown a good response rate in a small clinical trial.

GV could be used in an outpatient setting (not requiring a stay in inpatient setting). This leads to the lesser use of hospital resources making this regimen suitable for low-income and middle-income countries. Previous studies have also shown receiving chemotherapy in the outpatient setting is associated with a higher patient satisfaction and improved quality of life. The safety and effectiveness of GV administered as an outpatient regimen in children with relapsed HL in a real-life setting remain under investigation. 

This trial included 41 pediatric patients with relapsed HL. All children received GV as an outpatient setting. The average follow-up was 2.1 years.  

The overall response rate was 83%. 56% of patients had a complete response (complete disappearance of the cancer) and 44% had a partial response (tumor shrinkage). 

80% of patients were alive after 3 years. 100% of the patients with stage I/II at relapse and 66% of those with stage III/IV at relapse were alive at 3 years. 71% of the patients were alive at 3 years with no complications from the HL. 

GV was well tolerated in this patient population. Most patients did not require hospitalization during the treatment period. 4 patients (9.6%) developed side effects such as low levels of a white blood cells that fight off infections (neutropenia). 

The authors concluded that GV is suitable as an outpatient form of chemotherapy to treat relapsed childhood HL.

This study used a small population and used medical records data.