Diffuse large B-cell lymphoma: current treatment approaches

Diffuse large B-cell lymphoma (DLBCL) is the most commonly occurring lymphoid malignancy. While a series of trials support R-CHOP (cyclophosphamide, doxorubicin, vincristine, and prednisone, plus rituximab)-21 as the standard of care for all patients, DLBCL has substantial biological and clinical heterogeneity, leading to marked differences in outcomes for disease subgroups. We examine clinical, biological, and functional imaging techniques for risk-stratifying patients, and we review approaches for dose intensification in the rituximab era that are aimed at improving outcomes for poor-risk patients. Together, the results achieved with these measures indicate no particular benefit for administering R-CHOP-14 vs R-CHOP-21 in older or younger patients with DLBCL, highlight opportunities for future studies of young patients with high-risk DLBCL, and suggest the promise of biologic risk stratification. Such approaches will provide key opportunities for further advances in the treatment of DLBCL, given that chemotherapy intensification appears to provide limited additional benefits over the current standard of care.