Monotherapy
The pivotal MabThera monotherapy trial in relapsed or refractory low-grade follicular NHL established its efficacy and safety in this indication, with an objective response rate (ORR) of 48% and median time to progression (TTP) of 13 months in responders1. Re-evaluation of the data following the publication of the Cheson response criteria3 yielded amended objective and complete response rates of 56% and 32%, respectively2,5. Further analysis of the trial revealed that response rates were higher in patients with fewer previous treatments2.
MabThera monotherapy achieves substantial responses in patients with relapsed/refractory indolent NHL |
However, analysis of a wide range of prognostic factors known to predict response to chemotherapy, including lymphoma grade, years since diagnosis, bulky disease, serum ß2-microglobulin and serum lactate dehydrogenase concentration, showed that these factors are not predictive of response to MabThera2,4. Therefore, patients who would be unlikely to respond to chemotherapy are often good candidates for MabThera monotherapy.
