The effect of adding rituximab to high dose chemotherapy

High-dose chemotherapy (HDC) with autologous stem cell transplantation (ASCT) has been proved to be an effective salvage treatment in chemo-sensitive relapsed patients for both aggressive and indolent lymphomas. Since that, many investigators have extended this approach as part of the initial therapy of patients with aggressive lymphomas, especially those considered at poor prognosis, with conflicting results in randomized studies. Indeed a recent meta-analyses of up to 11 randomized trials in aggressive lymphomas, showed a similar OS in patients receiving first-line HDC + ASCT or standard chemotherapy.