Follicular lymphomas - a review of treatment modalities

Follicular lymphoma is the most common low-grade non Hodgkin's lymphoma and represent an homogeneous entity as defined by pathological, molecular and clinical data. This indolent disease is characterised by a slow growth patt ern with possible spontaneous regression, is often disseminated but remains incurable with available treatments when disseminated, For localised stage s, involved field radiotherapy remains the standard choice but other approa ches remain to be investigated. In advanced disease, chemotherapy has been demonstrated to produce high response rates but recent trials with new trea tment strategies including interferon and monoclonal antibodies may improve the current situation. In this article, we will review treatment of follic ular lymphomas, specially emphasising published phase III trials. (C) 2000 Elsevier Science Ireland Ltd. All rights reserved.