Treatment of diffuse large B-cell lymphoma

A review of new or emerging ideas concerning diffuse large B-cell lymphomas (DLBCL) is presented with particular emphasis on histologic classification, genetic prognostic factors, and first-line treatments. This lymphoma rests the most heterogeneous of all lymphomas for its clinical characteristics and outcome. This heterogeneity is probably secondary to the fact that a large proportion seems to occur from a transformation of an unknown indolent lymphoma. Current treatment is based on the combination of chemotherapy including cyclophosphamide, adriamycin, vincristine, prednisone (CHOP) or dose-intense CHOP-like regimen, and rituximab (R-CHOP).