Association between Lactate Dehydrogenase Levels to the Response of Non-Hodgkin Lymphoma in Elderly Patients Who Treated with First-Line Chemotherapy in Sanglah General Hospital

BACKGROUND: Non-Hodgkin Lymphoma (NHL) is a malignant haematological disease originates in the lymphocytes, caused by an abnormality in lymphocytes development which forms a tumour and may become cancer. Chemotherapy is the main treatment modality for aggressive lymphoma, but only a few patients achieve remission. Several factors such as age, clinical stadium, number of extranodal regions, and Lactate Dehydrogenase (LDH) level played a role in determining response to chemotherapy. AIM: To measure the association between LDH levels to prognosis of NHL in elderly patients who treated with rituximab, cyclophosphamide, doxorubicin, vincristine and prednisolone chemotherapy in Sanglah General Hospital. METHODS: This study used a retrospective descriptive study on elderly NHL patients in Sanglah General Hospital from January until December 2014. The evaluation was measured using the IPI score to determine the prognosis of patients. Demographic data, the stadium, extranodal region, LDH level, and response to chemotherapy were recorded. RESULTS: Twenty-five patients were included in the study. The age ranged was between 61-76 years old (Mean 65,68 ± 4,7 years; Median 65 years). The number of male patients was 19 (76%). Diffuse Large B-Cell Lymphoma (DLBCL) is the most common histopathological structure observed on the patients (68%). LDH levels were normal in 51.6% of the patients and considered high in the rests (48.4%). Results of the chemotherapy were a good response in 72.2%. Compared to the patients who showed complete response to chemotherapy, patients with no response (partial response and progression) had significantly higher levels of LDH (OR: 13,1; 95% CI: 1,36-126,30; p = 0,001). CONCLUSION: Non-Hodgkin Lymphoma in elderly patients with no response to chemotherapy had significantly higher levels of LDH than patients with complete response.