Late relapses in Hodgkin disease.

Among a cohort of 142 patients with Hodgkin disease (HD), pathologic stages (PS) IA through IVB, 84 remained in complete remission (CR) at least 3 years after the completion of initial protocol therapy. Eight of these patients subsequently developed a recurrence of HD and were defined as having a late relapse. The disease-free interval ranged from 37 to 76 months (median 53 months). Six of the relapse patterns were those of dissemination. All patients were salvaged and are in CR from 14 to 50 months after relapse. The actuarial survival, measured from the time of relapse, of the eight late-relapsing patients was superior to the actuarial survival of 38 patients with early relapse (disease-free interval less than 36 months), but as yet this difference is not statistically significant (P = 0.07, Gehan).