Intermediate-dose cytarabine is an effective therapy for adults with non-Langerhans cell histiocytosis

BACKGROUND: Non-Langerhans cell histiocytosis, including Erdheim–Chester disease (ECD), Rosai–Dorfman disease (RDD), indeterminate cell histiocytosis (ICH), and unclassified histiocytosis, is a rare disorder lacking a standard treatment strategy. We report our experience using intermediate-dose cytarabine as the first or subsequent therapy in non-Langerhans cell histiocytosis. RESULTS: Nine ECD patients, 5 RDD patients, 1 ICH patient and 1 unclassified histiocytosis patient were enrolled. Intermediate-dose cytarabine therapy was administered as 0.5–1.0 g/m(2) of intravenous cytarabine every 12 h for 3 days every 5 weeks. The median age at cytarabine initiation was 47.5 years (range 18–70 years). The median number of cycles of cytarabine administered was 5.5 (range 2–6). The overall response rate (ORR) was 87.5% in the overall cohort, including 12.5% with complete response and 75.0% with partial response. One patient experienced disease recurrence 19 months after cytarabine therapy. The median follow-up duration for the entire cohort was 15.5 months (range 6–68 months). The estimated 2-year progression-free survival and overall survival rates were 85.6% and 92.3%, respectively. The most common toxicity was haematological adverse events, including grade 4 neutropenia and grade 3–4 thrombocytopenia. No treatment-related deaths occurred. CONCLUSIONS: Intermediate-dose cytarabine is an efficient treatment option for non-Langerhans cell histiocytosis patients, especially for those with CNS involvement.