Reviewing current progress in Hodgkin’s lymphoma research and treatment

This article reviewed the current treatment options for HL.

Classical HL (cHL) and nodular lymphocyte-predominant HL (NLPHL) are the two main subtypes of HL. cHL is highly curable, with 5-year survival rates of 96.4% (birth to age 19) and 89.8% (20 to 64 years). Chemotherapy and radiation are the foundations of treatment for cHL. Combination chemotherapy regimens like ABVD (adriamycin, bleomycin, vinblastine, and dacarbazine) with or without radiation are the main standard of care. Because long-term survival has become more common, research is now focused on decreasing the intensity of treatment to lower the risk of later complications. PET scans after 1 or 2 cycles of treatment may be used to determine future treatment intensity.

For cHL patients who relapse or have refractory (cancer does not respond to treatment) disease, high-dose chemotherapy with stem cell transplantation (SCT) is used as salvage therapy (treatment of residual or recurring cancer). If the disease does not respond to this therapy (is chemoresistant), new treatments should be considered. Brentuximab vedotin (Adcetris), rituximab (Rituxan), nivolumab (Opdivo) and pembrolizumab (Keytruda) are antibodies. This type of treatment binds to cancer cells, leading to cancer cell death. Additional research is needed to determine if these drugs could make life better for both HL patients and survivors.

In NLPHL, treatment is not as clearly defined. Surgery, radiation, and rituximab with or without chemotherapy are commonly used.

Long-term survivors of HL should be monitored for late side effects. These can include secondary cancers, cardiovascular (heart and blood vessel) problems, and lung issues.

This article reviewed the current treatments used most often in Hodgkin lymphoma.