ALLOGENEIC BONE-MARROW TRANSPLANTATION FOR REFRACTORY AND RECURRENT LOW-GRADE LYMPHOMA - THE CASE FOR AGGRESSIVE MANAGEMENT

Purpose: To evaluate the role of allogeneic bone marrow transplantatio n (BMT) in recurrent low-grade lymphoma. Patients and Methods: Between 1989 and 1994, 10 patients with chemotherapy-refractory and recurrent low-grade lymphoma were treated with myeloablative therapy and alloge neic BMT. All patients had poor prognostic features and had been exten sively pretreated. Results: Eight patients achieved a complete remissi on and none have relapsed at a median follow-up time of 816 days (rang e, 346 to 1,865). Two patients died of early complications. The actuar ial survival and failure-free survival rates are both 80% +/- 12.6%. F or surviving patients, the duration of the current remission exceeds t hat of any previous remission achieved. Conclusion: These results comp are favorably with those for autologous BMT. allogeneic BMT offers con siderable promise for the treatment of patients with poor-prognosis lo w-grade lymphoma. Its role should be further defined in prospective st udies.