Impact of centralized diagnostic review on quality of initial staging in Hodgkin lymphoma: experience of the German Hodgkin Study Group.

Accurate clinical staging is crucial for adequate risk-adapted treatment in Hodgkin lymphoma (HL) to prevent patients from under- or over-treatment. Within the latest German Hodgkin Study Group trial generation, diagnostic findings such as histopathology, computerized tomography imaging and clinical risk factors were re-evaluated by expert panels. Here, we retrospectively analysed 5965 patients and identified 399 in who major discordant findings changed their first-line treatment allocation.

Treatment-related mortality in patients with advanced-stage hodgkin lymphoma: an analysis of the german hodgkin study group.

Purpose: The introduction of BEACOPP(escalated) (escalated-dose bleomycin, etoposide, doxorubicin, cyclophosphamide, vincristine, procarbazine, and prednisone) has significantly improved tumor control and overall survival in patients with advanced-stage Hodgkin lymphoma. However, this regimen has also been associated with higher treatment-related mortality (TRM). Thus, we analyzed clinical course and risk factors associated with TRM during treatment with BEACOPP(escalated).