Brentuximab Vedotin with Chemotherapy in Pediatric High-Risk Hodgkin’s Lymphoma

Castellino SM, Pei Q, Parsons SK, Hodgson D, McCarten K, Horton T, Cho S, Wu Y, Punnett A, Dave H, Henderson TO, Hoppe BS, Charpentier AM, Keller FG, Kelly KM. Brentuximab Vedotin with Chemotherapy in Pediatric High-Risk Hodgkin’s Lymphoma. N Engl J Med. 2022 Nov 3;387(18):1649-1660. doi: 10.1056/NEJMoa2206660. PubMed PMID: 36322844; PubMed Central PMCID: PMC9945772.

In adults with advanced-stage Hodgkin’s lymphoma, the CD30-directed antibody–drug conjugate brentuximab vedotin combined with multiagent chemotherapy has been shown to have greater efficacy, but also more toxic effects, than chemotherapy alone. The efficacy of this targeted therapy approach in children and adolescents with Hodgkin’s lymphoma is unclear. We conducted an open-label, multicenter, randomized, phase 3 trial involving patients 2 to 21 years of age with previously untreated Hodgkin’s lymphoma of stage IIB with bulk tumor or stage IIIB, IVA, or IVB. Patients were assigned to receive five 21-day cycles of brentuximab vedotin with doxorubicin, vincristine, etoposide, prednisone, and cyclophosphamide (brentuximab vedotin group) or the standard pediatric regimen of doxorubicin, bleomycin, vincristine, etoposide, prednisone, and cyclophosphamide (standard-care group). Slow-responding lesions, defined by a score of 4 or 5 (on a 5-point scale, with scores of 1 to 3 indicating rapid-responding lesions), were identified on centrally reviewed positron-emission tomography–computed tomography after two cycles. Involved-site radiation therapy was administered after the fifth cycle of therapy to slow-responding lesions and to large mediastinal adenopathy that was present at diagnosis. The primary end point was event-free survival, defined as the time until disease progression occurred, relapse occurred, a second malignant neoplasm developed, or the patient died. Safety and overall survival were assessed.