Central nervous system involvement in adult patients with diffuse large B-cell lymphoma: Influence of rituximab

CHOP (cyclophosphamide, doxorubicin, vincristine and prednisone)-like chemotherapy, in combination with rituximab (R-CHOP-like), improves outcome in patients with diffuse large B-cell lymphoma (DLBCL). We aimed to investigate the impact of rituximab on central nervous system (CNS) disease in adult patients. We studied 315 patients (aged 18-60 years old) from six hospitals between July 2003 and May 2008. All patients received CHOP-like (n=165) or R-CHOP-like (n=150) regimen every 3 weeks. With a median follow-up of 3.69 years, 10 patients (3.17%) developed CNS disease. The cumulative risk of CNS occurrence was not significantly different between the two treatment groups (P=0.871). We conclude that the addition of rituximab did not reduce the risk of CNS disease in adult patients with DLBCL.