Salvage chemotherapy with mini-BEAM for relapsed or refractory non- Hodgkin's lymphoma prior to autologous bone marrow transplantation

Abstract

Background: The role of intensive chemotherapy with autologous blood and marrow transplantation (ABMT) for patients with relapsed or refractory intermediate grade non-Hodgkin's lymphoma has recently been established. However, conventional dose salvage chemotherapy is frequently used to determine chemotherapy sensitivity and reduce tumor bulk prior to intensive therapy. Different salvage regimens have been proposed but none appears significantly superior. The purpose of this study was to determine the efficacy of mini-BEAM salvage chemotherapy in patients referred for ABMT and to define prognostic factors of response. Patients and methods: One hundred four patients referred for consideration ..