How long to follow after remission of diffuse large cell lymphoma – pro

Although CT remains the gold standard for the staging and follow-up of malignant lymphomas, 18F-FDG PET has a potential role in accurately staging disease and in predicting response to therapy. On the other hand, guidelines do not recommend PET routinely for surveillance. NCCN Guidelines for DLBCL on p. BCEL-4 recommend CT no more often than every 6 months for 2 years after completion of treatment, then only as clinically indicated. In contrast to the North American guidelines, the European Society of Medical Oncology (ESMO) in 2007 specifically advises against routine imaging except to evaluate residual disease. These guidelines recommend:

A negative PET scan at the end of therapy appears to provide favorable prognostic information. Persistently positive PET scans at the end of therapy, or in follow-up, warrant close follow-up or additional diagnostic procedures, since some of those patients may remain in prolonged remission.

The Imaging Subcommittee of the International Harmonization Project (IHP) in Lymphoma developed guidelines for performing and interpreting positron emission tomography (PET) for treatment assessment in patients with lymphoma. The new recommendations, targeting both clinical practice and clinical trials, are published in the January 22 Early Release issue of the 2007 al of Clinical Oncology. They are based on experts’ consensus and not randomized evidence.

Specific recommendations related to followup are:

After treatment completion, PET should be performed at least 3 weeks, and preferably 6 to 8 weeks, after chemotherapy or chemoimmunotherapy, and 8 to 12 weeks after radiation or chemoradiotherapy. Noncontrast PET/CT can be used instead of contrast-enhanced diagnostic CT to follow-up patients with lymphoma, although patients with hepatic or splenic involvement should continue to receive contrast-enhanced diagnostic CT. Attenuation-corrected PET is much preferred over nonattenuation-corrected scans.

As noted, guidelines do not recommend PET for surveillance after that point.

Barrington SF, Kluge R. FDG PET for therapy monitoring in Hodgkin and non-Hodgkin lymphomas. Eur J Nucl Med Mol Imaging. 2017;44(Suppl 1):97-110.

Freudenberg LS, Antoch G, Schutt P, et al. FDG-PET/CT in re-staging of patients with lymphoma. Eur J Nucl Med Mol Imaging. 2004;31:325–329

Yuliya S. Jhanwar and David J. Straus The Role of PET in Lymphoma Journal of Nuclear Medicine Vol. 47 No. 8 1326-1334, 2006

Lavely WC, Delbeke D, Greer JP,

NCCN, NHL, BCEL-4, 2018

J. W. Fletcher, B. Djulbegovic, H. P. Soares, B. A. Siegel, V. J. Lowe, G. H. Lyman, R. E. Coleman, R. Wahl, J. C. Paschold, N. Avril, et al.
Recommendations on the Use of 18F-FDG PET in Oncology
J. Nucl. Med., March 1, 2008; 49(3): 480 – 508.

Zelenetz A, Abramson JS, Advani A, et al. NCCN Clinical Practice Guidelines in Oncology: Non-Hodgkin’s Lymphomas. Version 2, 2011. Available at: http://www.nccn.org/professionals/physician_gls/pdf/nhl.pdf.

Jost L. Newly diagnosed large B-cell non-Hodgkin’s lymphoma: ESMO clinical recommendations for diagnosis, treatment and follow-up. Ann Oncol 2007;18(Suppl 2):ii55–ii56

 

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