The management of Hodgkin's disease in relapse after primary radiation therapy

Approximately 20-25% of patients with stage I-II Hodgkin's disease treated initially with irradiation alone will experience a relapse of disease. Restaging at the time of relapse provides a useful prognostic indicator and may help in the selection of salvage therapy. Systemic treatment is indicated in nearly all patients. In the Stanford experience, 109 patients who relapsed were treated with MOPP (or MOPP-like chemotherapy) with or without local irradiation. The actuarial 10-year survival and freedom from second relapse were both 57%. Important prognostic factors included 'relapse stage' (IA vs. II-IIIA vs. I-IIIB or IV) and type of salvage therapy (combined modality vs. chemotherapy alone). Important issues in management of these patients include the selection of chemotherapy agents, whether to incorporate localised irradiation, and the use of even more aggressive salvage treatment programs, such as autologous bone marrow transplantation, in selected patients with a very poor prognosis.