Outcomes of dose-adjusted Berlin–Frankfurt–Münster-90 regimen without radiotherapy in adolescents and adults with T cell lymphoblastic lymphoma

The aim of this study was to evaluate the outcomes using the dose-adjusted Berlin–Frankfurt–Munster (BFM-90) regimen without radiotherapy in adolescents and adults with T cell lymphoblastic lymphoma (T-LBL) at Beijing Cancer Hospital. Between March 2004 and December 2013, 57 newly diagnosed T-LBL patients were treated in our center. We retrospectively analyzed their main clinical characteristics and prognosis. The media age of the patients at diagnosis was 26 (range 14–54). At a median follow-up of 24 months (range 5–119), 38 patients (67 %) were alive. The estimated 3-year overall survival (OS) rate and progression-free survival (PFS) rate were 64 and 60 %, respectively. Abnormal WBC at diagnosis, high IPI and no early response were indicated as adverse prognostic factors for both PFS and OS (p < 0.05). There was also a trend for better survival in autologous peripheral blood stem cell transplantation (APBSCT) group as compared to non-APBSCT group (3-year OS 83 vs. 57 %), but without any significant difference. This study suggested that the dose-adjusted BFM-90 protocol without irradiation showed comparable long-term results in Chinese adolescents and adults with T-LBL. APBSCT may become a choice whether we can identify the best candidate.