Thalidomide as treatment of refractory thoracic Rosai-Dorfman disease

Rosai-Dorfman disease (RDD) is an infrequent entity of unknown aetiology. Currently, there is no clear consensus on the treatment, and nothing has shown definitive safety and efficacy. We describe the case of a woman diagnosed with pulmonary RDD, who responded to thalidomide treatment after failure of four previous lines of systemic chemotherapy.

We present the case of a 74-year-old woman diagnosed with pulmonary RDD and autoimmune complications. We decided to use thalidomide as a rescue treatment after the failure of corticosteroids and several chemotherapies. Our patient achieved remission of the disease and remained stable for years.

To the authors' knowledge, this is the first reported case in which thalidomide treatment induced remission in refractory pulmonary RDD. Thalidomide showed a rapid onset of action, with lasting responses, which could make it an exciting option for treating this life-threatening.