High-dose therapy/autologous hematopoietic stem cell transplantation in relapsed or refractory marginal zone non-Hodgkin lymphoma.

The optimal therapy for patients who have relapsed or refractory marginal zone lymphoma has not been defined. We analyzed the clinical outcomes of 14 patients who had relapsed or refractory marginal zone lymphomas and underwent high-dose therapy/autologous hematopoietic stem cell transplantation (HDT/AHSCT) at the University of Nebraska from August 1992 to August 2008. The median age of patients was 48 years (range, 29 to 62 years). All patients had relapsed or refractory disease. There were three treatment-related deaths within 100 days of transplantation. With a median follow-up of 138 months, the median duration of failure-free survival is 108 months, and the median duration overall survival is 120 months. Only two patients have relapsed. Secondary malignancies were seen in three patients (myelodysplastic syndrome, n = 2; gastric carcinoma. n = 1). We conclude that HDT/AHSCT is feasible in patients who have relapsed/refractory marginal zone lymphomas. Approximately one- third of patients can achieve long-term disease-free survival.