A patient with plasmablastic lymphoma achieving long-term complete remission after thalidomide-dexamethasone induction and double autologous stem cell transplantation: a case report

BACKGROUND: No standard of care is established for plasmablastic lymphoma (PBL) and prognosis remains extremely poor, given that patients relapse early after chemotherapy and display resistance to commonly applied cytostatic drugs. CASE PRESENTATION: We report a case of nodal, HIV-unrelated PBL in a patient who achieved and maintained a very long lasting complete remission after an intensive therapy consisting consisting of thalidomide plus dexamethasone followed by a consolidation with double autologous stem cell transplantation. Our approach was based on the full application of a standard multiple myeloma treatment and, to the best of our knowledge, it represents the only reported experience so far. This treatment was overall well tolerated. CONCLUSIONS: Multiple myeloma-like treatment may represent a possible alternative to intensive lymphoma-directed therapies.