Possible benefits of high-dose chemotherapy as intensive consolidation in patients with high-risk rhabdomyosarcoma who achieve complete remission with conventional chemotherapy.

The authors reviewed their single-center experience with autologous stem cell transplantation (SCT) in 22 patients with advanced rhabdomyosarcoma. Pathological subtypes included alveolar (n = 7) and embryonal types (n = 15). The conditioning regimen primarily consisted of etoposide, carboplatin, and melphalan. Fourteen, five, and three patients underwent SCT in CR, PR, and PD, respectively. Eight patients are currently alive without evidence of disease. The overall survival rate at 5 years was 70% for 14 patients who were in CR at the time of SCT. This limited experience warrants the examination of SCT in a prospective study.